


An Education For Power

by Tonifranz



Category: Powerpuff Girls
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-07
Updated: 2017-09-02
Packaged: 2018-08-20 01:47:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 60,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8231872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tonifranz/pseuds/Tonifranz
Summary: Dumb and stupid! That's the RRB to the PPG. They can't even spell right! The RRB, especially Brick, want to show that they were equals to the girls in brains as well as brawn. Without going to school. He vows to get their respect. Chapter 1. Brick stole Blossom's book. He finds out how much he needed to know, and how much he must do, to catch up with her.





	1. I - The Book

**An Education for Power**

* * *

Dumb and stupid! That's the RRB to the PPG. They can't even spell right! The RRB, especially Brick, want to show that they were equals to the girls in brains as well as brawn. Without going to school. He vows to get their respect. Chapter 1. Brick stole Blossom's book. He finds out how much he needed to know, and how much he must do, to catch up with her.

* * *

**Book I**

**How to Learn?**

**Chapter I**

**The Book**

_**1\. Blossom Alone** _

_Monday. August 9, 2004_

A pink flash! No, a streak!

His red eyes scanned the sky to look for the expected companion streaks. Blue and green ones, to be exact.

Nothing?

_Perfect. She's alone._

He chuckled. What's Pinky doing alone? It didn't matter. It's time for some fun.

"Looks like Pink Eyes is all alone, boys," he, a boy with red hair and red eyes, said to his two brothers.

"Um, what does that mean, Brick?" his blond brother asked as they lay under a tree in Townsville Park.

"Well Boomer, what happened last time you faced 'em three alone?"

"Um, well, they didn't play fair, and they beat me up, and put me in a light thingy, and I thought they'd kill me, but lucky me, you saved me!" he answered.

"You are such a wimp, don't ya know?" Butch, the other brother, teased.

"They don't play fair!" Boomer, the youngest brother, rejoined. "See how you fare if ya fight three by _yourself_! Y'all be in your undies and stuck in that light thingy too!"

"Well, we can play that game too," Brick smirked. "What of it, Butch? Care for _some…violence?"_

"Violence, Violence! _Vioooooooolence_!" the black haired middle child began to shout, jumping from left to right. "We're gonna beat up a powderpuff!"

"Boom?"

"Yeah! Those girls are mean, and have cooties, and are stupid!" he replied. "They stole my clothes! Who steals someone else's clothes? They're creeps!"

The six-year-old leader grinned. "Good. Now, here's what we're gonna do. I'm gonna distract her, and while I'm doing that, you, Butch, grab her!"

"What 'bout me?" asked Boomer.

"Boom, you go with Butch, help him if the high and mighty puff proves too hard," he instructed.

...

* * *

Brick quickly flew towards where the pink light was headed.

"Stop! Where do you think you're going, babe?" he shouted as she approached him.

Blossom stopped as she nearly crashed into her counterpart. She rolled her pink eyes as if he was nothing more than a distraction, an obstacle, not the threat that he was. "Move it, dummy! I'm in a hurry!"

"Oh you are, are you? You gotta go through me, first!" he declared. His red eyes darted over to something she was carrying in her hand. It was something he had seen before, but he had never touched. He was unfamiliar with what it's called. His curiosity got the better of him. "Gimme that!"

"Oh this? This is a _book,_ something which you won't be able to understand!" she haughtily declared, waving the object before her eyes. "You can't even spell right! How can you even read it? You're too stupid to do so!"

"Who are you calling stupid?"

"You are! You can't even spell dumb!"

"Ha, you're wrong there! I know how to spell! You spell as it sounds! What's the use of b in dumb? Nothing! That's why it's spelled d-u-m!"

"You really are a dum dum," she teased. "And to think you're my counterpart! I'm ashamed that someone as smart as me is a counterpart to someone as dumb as you!"

"Oh I'm dumb, am I?" he smiled as he could see Butch silently flying behind her.

"Yes you are, and—hey, let go!"

Butch grabbed her, subjecting the pink puff to a bear hug. The red ruff quickly grabbed the book from her hands.

It was the first time he had ever held a book. He had seen lots before, but never even bothered to even touch one. He never even knew what they were called until Blossom told him. Why should he? He's too clever and smart to read any books! All those things were useless to the Master Masher, Duke of Destruction, and King of Crushing himself! Books were dumb and only for sissies!

He looked at the title.

_ENGLISH FOR BEGINNERS_

Still, he was curious. He never saw the inside of a book before, and he wanted to find out what it was. He was sure that it was something silly and inane and he could close the book immediately.

He opened the cover.

He saw what he later learned was the cover page. Then there was the table of contents.

He kept flipping.

_Chapter One._

Hm.

Then he began reading the text. He was taught reading by Him before he was resurrected. He and his brothers were only taught basic spelling and grammar, but no more than that. Only enough to make graffiti, read signs, buy things, and read money.

Still, it was enough to read Blossom's book. It was for kindergarteners or first graders, and he understood well enough.

He expected to just close the book and dismiss it as stupid, but to his surprise, his eyes were glued on the words, and he just kept reading. _Just kept reading._ He could not keep his eyes off of it, as he learned the basics, some of which he knew, but most of which were new.

He was fascinated, and wanted to know more.

"Give that back!" Blossom shouted as she continued to struggle. "I've got to return that to the library or I'm gonna be overdue!"

He looked at Blossom, still struggling against Butch's grip. He saw Boomer stupidly floating around. "Hey Boomer, beat her up! Butch, just hold her while he's doin' it."

"No fair! You're three and I'm only one!" she shouted.

"Tell that to Boomer when you three beat him up and kidnapped him," Brick coldly said as he looked at her. "Boom Boom, do your worst!"

"Right!" the blond said as he punched the Powerpuff in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her.

"Take that!" He then gave her a powerful kick on the head.

"You three beat me up while I was alone!"

Then a punch to her face.

"You stole my clothes!"

Another kick to her head.

"You put me in that light thingy and made me stand in my underwear!"

He gave an uppercut to her chin with his left hand.

"You would have killed me if I didn't get saved!"

Then more punches to the Puff's stomach.

"You deserved it!" She weakly replied. Blossom looked at the blond ruff, her pink eyes full of contempt. "You're evil! You stole candy!"

After five minutes of Boomer's nonstop beating, Blossom was weak and bloody, her eyes black and her face bruised.

Butch, with a grin on his face, was silent during the beating, his grip on the puff unyielding. Brick was silent with an amused expression, holding the book, as he watched.

"You won't get away with this," she weakly coughed.

"Let's see, Pinky," he grinned. "Hold this, Boomer. Don't lose it. Butch, let her go."

The blond boy nodded, satisfied with his revenge, and took the English book from Brick's hands.

"C'mon leader girl! Fight me," he said.

Blossom, bloodied and weak, tried to bolt, but her way was blocked by Boomer and Butch. She then attacked Brick, but she was already severely weakened. The ruff leader let her hit him on the face. It barely tickled.

_Oh this would be sweet._

"Let the bludgeoning, _begin!"_ he shouted, as his eyes shot laser, hitting her point black.

"This is for all the things you did to us, for killin' us, and for makin' fun of us!" he coldly said, and kicked her in the head, knocking her out and sending her into the pavement below.

"All right! That was awesome!" Butch shouted. "We got 'em! We got 'em! We're the best! We're the best!"

"Yeah! That should learn 'em! Nobody steals my clothes and gets away with it!" Boomer added, yelling, and pumping his fists.

"Should we finish her off?" Butch asked as they looked at the prone form of the puff leader.

"Nah. That'll send a message to those lame-o powderpuffs!" the redheaded leader said, grabbing the book off Boomer's hand. "Let's grab a bite to eat."

* * *

…

After eating their stolen lunch, the three ruffs went back to their home—Fuzzy Lumpkin's shack in the woods.

He went to a corner and began to read. Again, he was engrossed. He was unable to put down the book.

He was surprised with himself. He thought that reading was stupid. But he found out that day, that he really liked reading. So much so that his eyes kept looking for something to read. He knew he was clever and smart, but oh boy! Did he realize that he needed to learn much more than what he already knew.

He got distracted by a commotion.

"Will you keep quiet!" he hissed.

"He started it!" Butch shouted.

"No, you did, you meanie!" Boomer shouted.

Brick looked at the two. They were wrestling on the floor, with Butch getting the upper hand, but with Boomer not easily giving in. Ordinarily, this wasn't something that would concern him. After all, fighting each other was one of their ways to amuse themselves. Being superpowered beings meant that they could easily heal from blows and wounds. Blossom, for example, would be good as new in a few hours, and even faster if she was given proper treatment.

But right now, Brick wanted to read. He wanted to know what exactly was a noun, an adjective, or a verb. He wanted to know all the various grammatical rules of the language he was speaking.

He thought about ordering them to be quiet. But he knew it would be futile. Butch and Boomer trying to be quiet would end up being even more noisy than outright noise.

"I'm leaving. Don't follow me," he declared.

"Where ya goin'?" asked Butch.

"Somewhere quiet," he snapped. "Do what you want. Just don't wreck it, 'kay?"

The two nodded as they resumed their wrestling match. Brick flew through the window, trying to find a place of peace and quiet.

He settled on the top of Mojo's observatory.

* * *

_**2\. Blossom's Recovery** _

Blossom opened her eyes. Her head was hurting a little bit. She looked around and saw Bubbles and Buttercup looking at her. They were at home, in their room.

She remembered. She was flying to the public library. Her book was due. She got trapped by three Rowdyruffs and got beaten up.

_Stupid! How could I be so stupid?_

Her mind still could not comprehend that those complete idiots, the Rowdyruffs, could come up with such a basic plan as fighting her three on one. Or even distracting her while two of _his_ brothers sneaked up on her from behind. Or fight her while one grabbed her!

Brick obviously planned the sneak attack. But that can't be! Anybody who can't spell 'dumb' could not make a competent plan. If someone who got the brains of Mojo Jojo could not make a successful plan against one powerpuff, how could a braindead idiot who could not even spell come up with one?

_He got lucky._

That's the only reason. Brick was a thick, disgusting, idiot that can't even spell dumb! There's no way he can plan, or think, or even read. And he certainly cannot outplan or outthink a smart girl like Blossom!

"She's waking up," she could hear Bubbles whisper. "She's waking up! Are you okay, Blossom?"

"I'm not sure. I guess I am," she replied, noticing that nothing was aching and everything felt normal.

"What happened?"

"I got ambushed by those stupid Rowdyruffs," Blossom narrated. "All three of them."

"All three of them?" Bubbles asked. "Why would they attack you when you're alone?"

"Why wouldn't they?" asked Buttercup. "That's a very smart thing to do."

"That's just it! Because they're too dumb to think of it," Blossom replied. "Or that's what we thought."

"No way! Those boys were dumb! D-U-M-B dumb, or in Brick's case, d-u-m! They couldn't think their way out of a paper bag!" the green puff charged.

"They were lucky, I suppose," Blossom said.

"You were lucky too! An ambulance happened to be passing by when you fell," Bubbles narrated, "and brought you here."

"Yeah. And the Professor put some medicine which speeded up the Chemical X fast healing."

At least her physical injuries were gone. She should never have left her guard down. She was just returning the book to the library. And the book…

_Wait! The book!_

"Buttercup, where's the book?"

"What book?"

"The one that I was supposed to return!"

"I dunno," she replied.

"You don't have any book with you when they found you," Bubbles added.

Then she remembered.

"Brick took it!" Blossom spat. "What time is it?"

"Four in the afternoon," Bubbles replied.

"There's still time."

"Time for what?"

"To get my book back, and return it before the library closes."

"What? Red, you've gone bonkers!" Buttercup shouted.

"You just got healed! You can't, you just can't!" Bubbles agreed.

"Look, they overpowered me. If we three go after them, then we could outsmart them like we always do," Blossom said.

"But—"

"I have a perfect record in the library! I won't have it ruined by stupid boys, got it?" Blossom asserted, in a tone that would brook no dissent. "I will go _alone_ if you wish, but if you want to let your sister get beaten up again, _that's on you_!"

"Okay, we'll go with you!" Buttercup conceded, folding her arms in defeat.

"Yeah. We'll always stick together," Bubbles smiled.

The three girls flew towards the city to find the boys, and hopefully, recover the book.

"I don't think we'll find the book," Buttercup asserted. "After all, the boys are too stupid to even read! Brick, I'm sure, just threw it away after seeing letters he can't even understand."

"Well, there are pictures. Hopefully, they'll keep it if the images are interesting enough," said Blossom.

But Blossom was not so sure. Her sister was right. Brick, who can't even spell dumb, surely can't read well at all, and would probably destroy the book and she'll have to explain to the librarian why she lost it. Oh she'll beat up the good for nothing Brick for that!

"Look," Bubbles whispered. "It's Brick."

She pointed at the top of the observatory, and sure enough, a red figure was on top of it.

It was Brick.

 _Reading_?

She blinked. She can't believe it. Maybe the pictures were more interesting than she thought.

"He's alone," Buttercup whispered.

"Excellent. Let's beat him up and get him to the Professor. Hopefully, he has repaired the containment ray," she ordered. "Then we can get the other two. But first things first. Let's get the book off his hands."

* * *

…

Brick had just read the last pages of the book, and he turned it once more. "Bibliography," he read and scanned. "What the?"

He turned the page.

 _Index_.

His eyes read the entry but could make no sense of the words with numbers besides them. He wondered why anyone would write a bunch of words, arranged by letters, with numbers besides them. But it was an excellent book. It was his first book that he ever read, and he was pleased. It was dull, but useful. And he knew that he would rather have that knowledge, than be without it.

_Nouns. Pronouns. Adjectives. Adverbs._

Who knew? He sure didn't!

"HEY ROWDYRUFF, BRING BACK BLOSSOM'S BOOK!"

His head turned to the sound of the voice. It was Buttercup.

"Buttercup! You alerted him!" Blossom reprimanded.

He blanched as he heard those voices. He looked.

_Bubbles. Pinky. Buttercup._

All three Powerpuffs.

And he was alone.

He knew what fate awaited him if he fought them. He would be dragged to the dreaded white Untonium house, stripped naked, and put on the light thingy, as Boomer described it. He could still remember his horror in seeing his brother, trapped, helpless. It was only Bubbles' dumb act that freed them from certain death. He was sure they would have killed them—like they did the first time.

So he did the most sensible thing.

As fast as he could, he bolted to the opposite direction.

"After him, girls! We must get him before his brothers join him!" he could hear Blossom order.

Stupid! He was as stupid as Boomer and as stupid as Blossom for going alone and risking being caught in a three on one situation. He needed to lose them. He looked at the ground below. They were now above the forest just outside Townsville.

A plan formulated on his head.

_They want the book? Let's see how much they want it!_

Brick suddenly stopped and turned around. "Hey lame-o girls!" he shouted. "Looking for this? Stop, or I'll destroy this!"

The three girls stopped, curious as to what he's up to.

"Don't you dare!" Bubbles gasped.

"Give it back!" Blossom demanded.

"You can have it! I'm done reading it anyway!" he stated nonchalantly.

"All of it?" Blossom asked, a bit shocked. "In such a short time?"

"Yeah. I just stole it from you this morning," he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Blossom scoffed. "Liar! That's 200 pages! No way an uneducated dunce like you could read it that fast! I'm sure you can't even understand it!"

"Yeah. You just looked at the pictures!" Buttercup added.

"Yeah! You can't even spell dumb!" Bubbles finished. "Give it back!"

He grinned. "Why don't you stupid puffs go, and _get it_!" he laughed, throwing it as hard as he could in the opposite direction.

" _ **My book**_!" Blossom shouted and went after it.

He smiled before flying in the opposite direction, Buttercup and Bubbles chasing after him.

He stopped, turned around, and as expected, Buttercup reached him first, lunging with her right arm. He smirked, as he grabbed her arm. She was surprised by his action as he spun her and threw her at Bubbles, who was right behind her. The two girls were thrown to a moderate distance.

Brick then fell to the ground, landing on the forest below, and sat on the branch of a tree, the canopy hiding him from view. He could see the Bubbles and Buttercup recover and then look around.

…

* * *

_**3\. The Library** _

Blossom grabbed the book, and opened it. She scanned it, and was relieved that the book was intact. There were no torn pages, no vandalism, and the only thing she noticed were the dog ear folds. It was not there before. Had Brick made those? Was he reading? Impossible. He was too dumb to read the book! Or even know that it was a book! He claimed he read it all for just a couple of hours. He was lying just to make himself look smarter!

Now to teach the Brick head a lesson.

"I got it!" she shouted, but was puzzled when she saw Bubbles and Buttercup staring at the forest below.

"Where's Brick?" she asked.

"He got away," Bubbles offered.

"How could he get away? You're two, and he's one!"

"He just got away, okay? He's hiding down there," Buttercup snapped, and pointed to the forest below.

"Let's look for him," their blond sister suggested.

"No time. Only five minutes till the library closes," she said, before she flew towards the direction of the library.

Buttercup and Bubbles, not wanting to leave their leader alone and be susceptible to ambush, followed.

The puff leader looked at the library. It was an old Carnegie library, with a Victorian design. She had been there lots of times, and those times had been some of the best times in her short life. Yes, she was a bit of a nerd, but that was part of being the leader of the Powerpuff Girls.

She entered at 4:58 p.m. Buttercup and Bubbles followed a minute later.

"Hello Mrs Cartwright," Blossom said, almost breathless. "I'm here to return the book that I borrowed."

The grey haired old lady smiled and got the book, and stamped its back portion. Blossom handed her library card, and it was also stamped. The red haired powerpuff smiled as she saw the time stamp.

4:59 p.m.

_Just in time._

"Still got the perfect record, Blossom," she nicely said, "No overdue books ever since you became a member!"

"I am the leader of the Powerpuff Girls," Blossom proudly declared. "I have to set an example."

"I know you want to borrow a book, but it's closing time already," Mrs Cartwright said as a loud bell rang as the clock struck 5:00 pm and the remaining library patrons streamed out.

"Don't worry, it's okay."

"We better go, or the ghosts of the Townsville City Library might get mad!" Bubbles whispered.

"She's right, you know," Mrs Cartwright said. "The ghosts of Townsville City Library haunt this place after closing hours, and protect the books from being stolen."

"I'm sure they won't be mad at me. Bye Mrs Cartwright!" she waved as the three girls left.

"Bubbles, you really don't believe the ghosts of Townsville Library really exists, do you?" Blossom asked.

"They do exist. Have you watched that TV program? People actually saw them!" Bubbles defended.

"More like they knew people who saw them, but those interviewed didn't actually see them!" Blossom explained.

"Ha, Bubbles, you are a scaredy-cat!" Buttercup teased.

"You should be! The ghost of Townsville library punishes mean kids like you," Bubbles asserted, sticking her tongue out at her sister.

…

* * *

Brick was standing inconspicuously just outside the library, standing beside a tree. He had followed the girls, all the time making sure he was not spotted. He was curious where Blossom was taking her book.

He had seen the library many times before, but it was only now that he really gave it notice.

Why did Blossom go there with the book?

Then the girls left. But without the book. Why did they leave the book in the building?

The answer was obvious.

The girls were stupid! Leaving books in such a public place!

He flew to the side of the building and peeked through the windows.

His eyes widened. Books. Tons of books. Innumerable books. More books than he had ever seen in his admittedly very short life.

He wanted to read it.

Badly.

He didn't care if it was stupid. It was stupid! But he would learn why those books were stupid and useless. And he wanted to learn.

_Learn._

He flew back to Fuzzy's shack.

"Where have you been?"

"Mojo's."

"You met with Pops?" asked Butch.

"No. I sat on top of the lab."

"Where's the book?" Boomer asked.

"Finished reading it."

"But you said books were stupid! And only idiots read it!" Butch reacted.

"So I did. I wanted to know why they were stupid."

"So, for dinner, kill, or steal?" the green ruff asked.

"Steal!" Brick answered.

The boys flew into town and stole their dinner. They attacked a pizza delivery van, stole three boxes of pizzas, and flew back to the shack.

After dinner, the boys slept. Or at least Butch and Boomer did, on two flimsy mattresses with barely a cloth to cover them. Brick himself pretended to sleep, then once he was satisfied that his brothers were indeed sleeping, went out of the shack.

He carried his stolen flashlight, and flew to the center of Townsville. He smirked as he saw the building.

_Townsville City Library._

He went to the front door, and checked if it was not locked. It was locked. So he went around the place, and saw the back door. It too was locked. But he anticipated it. He flew to one of the small terraces at the third floor. He got a paperclip from his pocket, and fashioned the wire to the shape of the key. He opened the locked door to the terrace, and locked it from inside.

He turned around, and stared. Where to start? He flew to a shelf of books. He looked at the titles at the spine.

_Advanced Physics._

He bit his flashlight, and took the book. And opened it. And started reading. And his head hurt. Something about Einstein, relativity, quantum mechanics, and a bunch of formulas.

He immediately shut the book and put it back on the shelf.

He felt so stupid. He could not understand any of it.

He floated around. He would occasionally grab a book, and immediately would be discouraged.

 _Advanced Accounting 4_.

He nearly got mad when he saw terms like debit, credit, worksheet and put it back.

_Law._

Civil Procedure. Certiorari. Demurrer of Evidence. Pleadings. Petition.

He nearly got a headache.

_Information Technology._

HTML. Spyware. Central Processing Unit. Antivirus. Microprocessor.

He was lost.

He realized that so many things were beyond him. He, the cleverest of the Rowdyruffs, knew very little.

But at least he was smarter than those stupid Powderpuffs. Come to think of it, what was a powderpuff anyway?

He looked around, and saw something.

Grade School section. Kindergarten books.

Then he saw it.

It was Blossom's book.

He grabbed it, and there it was. He put it back. He had already read it. He looked around.

_English Grammar for First Grade._

Opening it, he was relieved that he could understand it. He smiled as he went and opened the lights. He looked around. There were a couple of chairs and tables. And a sofa. He settled on the sofa.

It was soft. It was cushy. It was better than any other chair he had sat on. He then opened the book and began reading.

He finished it, all 150 pages, with big text, in two hours, his eyes never leaving the text, his brain absorbing all the new information like a sponge.

He put the book down. He wanted to know more. Read more. It was nearly midnight. He ought to go home, get some sleep.

But he wanted to read!

_One more book._

Then he'll go home.

He got another book.

 _Basic Science_ for first grade.

Reading science was even more revealing and exciting. He found out about the difference between plants and animals. About states of matter. About the nine planets. About the kinds of clouds. About simple machines.

He was overwhelmed. He read the book, all 200 pages, with big text and lots of illustrations, in two hours.

He forgot that he needed to go home, and got another book.

 _Geography for Kids_!

He found out about the world, and about the continents. He was in North America. His country was the United States of America. In the state of Maine. And that Townsville was a really small city, about 250,000 people. Next to Townsville was Citiesville, with about 600,000 people.

He looked at the window. He saw light! Panicking, he looked at the sky. It was red. The sun was rising. And he felt really sleepy.

He immediately put out the light, and put the book back on its shelf. He left the library, and hurried home to the shack.

That night, he absorbed more knowledge than he ever had before he stole Blossom's book. It was so overwhelming. His brain was so tired, that he needed a rest.

He went back to the shack, saw his brothers still sleeping, went to his mattress, closed his eyes, and was out like a rock.

* * *

…

_**4\. Big Blunder** _

_August 10, 2004, Tuesday_

"Big bro, wake up!" Butch said.

"Go away. I'm sleepy!" Brick whined.

"We haven't eaten yet!" Boomer whined.

"Go steal something."

"C'mon! You slept at the same time we did!" Butch growled, and settled the matter by giving his sleeping brother a hard kick on the stomach.

The red eyed ruff quickly stood up, and punched his brother in the stomach, who fell on the floor in pain.

"I'm awake! Okay?"

His black haired brother picked himself up from the floor, but before he could do anything, Boomer interrupted him.

"I'm hungry! I wanna have some food!"

"Wanna isn't proper, you should use want to," Brick quipped without even thinking.

"What?" Butch asked.

"I mean, yeah, wanna is fine," said Brick, trying to hide his knowledge. After all, it was stupid, right? "So, want to eat some animal?"

"Huh?"

"You know, burgers and hotdogs! They're meat, so they came from animals, while vegetables came from plants," Brick himself quickly replied without thinking, repeating something he's read.

"You okay, bro?" asked Butch.

Brick castigated himself. He was sure he sounded so stupid.

"I am okay," he said. "Come on. Let's find something to eat!"

"Yay! Food!" Boomer cheered, his tongue hanging out of his mouth, drool dripping on the floor in anticipation. "Steal or Kill?"

"Steal. I ain't in the mood to hunt," Brick snapped.

"Hunt?" Butch asked.

Brick looked at him. He realized he used another word he just learned in the library. "It means killing animals for food. I heard it when some schmuck talked about it."

They floated towards the town, and saw a hotdog stand in the middle of the park.

"Hm, that smells really good!" Boomer remarked, his mouth watering in anticipation.

"Looks really good! I bet Maine doesn't have anything as delicious!"

Butch look at him. "Where's Maine?"

"Well duh! It's our state!"

"What's a state?" Boomer asked.

Brick looked at his brothers and was appalled. How could they not know? Then again, he himself didn't know about it until last night.

"And what does decious mean?" asked his blonde brother.

"Delicious, Boomer." Oh right. Delicious was another word he learned the night before. "It means it tastes really good!"

"So why didn't you just say so?" asked Butch. "How did you know that? Are you going nerdy on us?"

"Um, I heard someone talking about it," their leader 'explained.'

"Well it's stupid!" Butch remarked.

"Yeah, it's stupid!" Brick agreed. "I'm just testing to see if you'd know it's stupid."

"What do 'testing' mean?" asked Butch.

Brick groaned. He inadvertently used another word he had learned the night before.

"Nevermind. Let's go steal some breakfast!"

"Brick, it's noon. It's lunch," Boomer corrected. "Even I know that!"

"Yeah. Let's go!" the black haired ruff agreed, his stomach growling.

They approached the hotdog stand, both the green eyed and the blue eyed ruffs ready to snatch, but Brick raised his hand. "I've got a better way. We're going to ask."

"But we don't ask! We take!" Butch whined.

"Just watch, and stick close to me!" he said as the three floated in front of the vendor.

The teen-age seller, with a freckled face, brown eyes and hair, and about 17, paled at the sight.

Brick growled. "You, do you know who we are?"

The hot dog man nodded.

"We're the Rowdyruff boys!" said the leader. "Now give us some hotdogs!"

"Or you'll end up like the last one who didn't!" Butch threatened.

"Yeah, you'll end up like the last one who didn't!" Boomer repeated, earning him a hit from his Butch.

"Say your own lines, stupid!"

"Please don't hurt me!" the seller cried as he hurriedly made three hotdogs on a bun and handed it to the boys.

"Let's thrash him anyway," Butch said as soon as he received his hotdog.

Brick shook his head. "Not now! Let's go!"

The three boys flew and landed on the top of a building.

"Did you see his face? He looked like he's gonna pee his pants!" Boomer shouted before biting his food.

* * *

…

Blossom smiled as she flew to the library. She wanted borrow another book, and her sisters were accompanying her so she won't be ambushed alone again. She cursed the Rowdyruff Boys for that. She nearly got an overdue book because of them.

_Stealing books! How uncivilized and uncouth!_

Her eyes darted around to see if they were around. She dismissed the thought. Those boys don't even know what a library was, let alone the knowledge to even go near one! They were uneducated boors!

Which was why Blossom was puzzled.

Why did Brick steal her book if that was so? Surely, that was not for the purpose of reading. _Brick, reading?_ Blossom resisted the urge to laugh out loud at the mere thought...Still, looking at him, sitting at the top of the observatory, it really looked like he was reading. _It's probably the pictures_ , as Buttercup said. There's no way he could be in anyway interested, couldn't he?

Of course not.

 _It was just to mess with me_ , she thought.

"We're here," Buttercup announced, breaking the pink puff's stream of thought. Seeing the building was enough to bring a smile to her face. It was one of her favorite places in Townsville.

They greeted the guard at the door, showed their library cards—even Buttercup had one, and entered. Blossom went to the elementary section, and scanned the books. She found what she was looking for.

 _Myths and Legends of Townsville_.

She picked it up, and waited quietly in line to check it out.

"I don't get you, Red! It's summer! And you stick your nose in a book!" Buttercup complained. "It wouldn't be so bad if we didn't have to babysit each other!"

That earned her a couple of stares, and a quiet signal from the other library patrons.

"Sorry," the green eyed girl sheepishly apologized.

"Yeah, Blossom! We should enjoy the sun!" Bubbles agreed, besides her, in a whisper. "In a few weeks, it would be September. And first grade."

"Hello girls," the janitor, Joe Hendriks, greeted as he approached them, also in a whisper.

"Hello Mr Hendriks," the red haired heroine replied.

"Say, did you know that the ghosts of Townsville Library are back?" he whispered.

"What?" Bubbles asked, fear and surprise evident in her voice.

Blossom rolled her eyes, and Buttercup suppressed the urge to scoff.

"I saw them last night."

"You saw them?" the blonde puff asked.

"Well, not really, but I saw the lights on last night. The elementary section, I think."

"So why do you think there were ghosts?" Blossom asked, struggling to stamp out any trace of sarcasm in her voice.

"Well, I was the one who switched off the lights before it closed," he said. "I remember switching it off. And I was there when the library was locked. And I know that the lights were not on. But I was on my way home from the bar when I looked at the library, and the light were on."

"Couldn't it be a thief?" asked Buttercup.

"Nah. Nothing's stolen. Nothing's disturbed," said the janitor. "And all the doors were locked. Nothing could have entered!"

"Well, thanks for the information," Blossom said as she checked out the book. "Thank you Mrs Cartwright. I'll try my best to return it earlier than last time."

* * *

…

"Oh My God! The ghosts are back!" Bubbles shrieked, nearly in panic, as they flew home.

"He's trying to scare us!" Buttercup retorted. "There are no such things as ghosts!"

"He forgot to turn off the lights," Blossom argued. "He's making up the story to cover his mistake."

"But the ghosts—" Bubbles began.

"Aren't there!" Buttercup snapped. "Listen, I'm hungry. Who wants some hotdogs!"

Before her two sisters could say anything, she was flying towards a hotdog stand in the ground. Her sisters followed. Buttercup gave her order, and so did Blossom and Bubbles.

"Thank God you're here," the hotdog vendor stated as he received the money.

Blossom looked at him. He was scared, but mixed with relief upon seeing the girls.

"What happened?" she asked.

"The Rowdyruff Boys. They asked for free hotdogs. And they threatened me if I didn't!"

"Well, thank you," Blossom said as she rose in the air, one hand on her book, the other on her hotdog. The other two puffs followed her.

"So the boys are back to their old tricks," she said as she watched her sisters eat, before she herself took a bite.

* * *

…

She saw him.

She saw _them_.

The girls were high in the sky, doing a random patrol before going home. They again flew over the park when Blossom saw them. Boomer and Butch were on the ground, doing some horseplay under a tree.

Brick was on the tree. Resting on the branches. His eyes were open, but he was struggling to stay awake as his eyelids kept falling down.

She saw it.

Her opportunity.

Eye bags.

_Perfect!_

She grinned. "Girls, the Rowdyruffs are below us," she whispered loudly.

Buttercup and Bubbles looked down.

"Let's pound 'em!" Buttercup said, a sadistic grin forming on her face.

"Yeah. Let's teach 'em a lesson! Stealing hotdogs is mean!" Bubbles agreed.

Blossom noticed she still had her book. "I need to bring this home," she said. "Wait for me, and don't do anything until I come back, okay? In the meantime, just watch them, and don't attract attention."

Her two sisters nodded.

One minute later, Blossom was back.

"Let's do this!" she declared.

…

* * *

_**5\. Boomer v Bubbles** _

Brick still felt a bit sleepy as he rested on the branches of a tree in the middle of the park. He closed his eyelids to rest his eyes just a little bit. He was really out of energy. His brothers were in the grass below the tree, doing something fun, but he didn't care what it was. He just wanted to take a nap.

"HEY, ROWDYRUFFS!"

He opened his eyes, annoyed. He wanted to rest, but he knew he had to wake up. It was Blossom's voice.

_Leave me alone! I'm trying to have a nap!_

And sure enough, the three Powerpuff Girls were there, floating, with determined expressions etched on their faces.

"Don't you know it's not nice to not pay for your food?" Bubbles remarked.

"Oh yeah! Don't you know it's not nice to steal someone else's clothes?" Boomer answered from below, bitterness evident in his voice.

"You stole her book and beat her up," Buttercup added. "You three dumb losers are gonna pay for that!"

Brick really didn't want to fight. He knew they could beat the girls up—after all, they hadn't lost physically any fight with the girls. All their losses were because of "dirty tricks". Or were not losses at all. He still laughed when the girls claimed the time the boys stole the boat, the tank, and the plane from the girls as a victory for girls! They had fun! The girls simply stood there and left! They were the ones who retreated! If they tried to attack them, he and his brothers could have moved, and moved easily to kick their butt!

But right now, he was out of energy. He really wanted to sleep.

Yet he could not back down. His pride would not allow it.

He stifled a yawned as he went into a defensive position. He tried thinking a way to avoid a fight, but his brain was so tired that nothing came out. Running away would be useless, since he had not enough energy to get away from three determined puffs.

"Well, bring it on, Pinky," he remarked dryly.

The girls attacked them. He tried to formulate a battle plan, but again, the only thing that he could think of was how he wanted to crawl back to the sofa in the library, and take a nap.

Brick knew this was going to end badly for them.

* * *

…

With no orders from his leader, Boomer shot high in the sky, forming an energy ball in his hand and threw it at Bubbles. The blonde puff easily avoided it. She immediately sent an energy ball of her own his way. He smiled. He formed an electric bat, swung it, sending Bubbles' energy back to her. She easily avoided it.

He then flew at her, swinging his bat at her head, but she maneuvered herself from being hit, and gave a roundhouse kick that caught the back of his head. A stinging pain was felt and he fell to the ground.

"That hurt!" he whined, touching the bump on his head.

"That's what you get for being a meanie!" his counterpart shouted as she dove right after him.

He smiled. He waited until she was very close, then the bat reformed in his hand, he jumped forward until they were nearly touching, avoiding her fist, and swung his bat, crashing into her stomach, and throwing her high into the air. He then flew up, faster than Bubbles' velocity, appeared above her, and again, used his bat to hit her in the top of her head and send her to the ground.

"And Boomer's going for the homerun!" he shouted in excitement, even though he had no idea what a homerun was.

Bubbles emerged from the crater that she formed, determination etched into her face even as her body ached and she rubbed her head on the spot where the bat hit her. She flew to him, seemingly to repeat what she had done before, as Boomer waited in anticipation, bat in hand, ready to use it on her. Then she stopped a few feet, opened her mouth. And screamed.

The scream was so loud that he was forced to cover his ears. He noticed that he was thrown far away, the sound waves physically hurting him.

"That girl's shout! That hurt!" he said to himself.

"Take that, you mean bully you!" he heard her shout.

He looked at the direction of the voice, and he noticed Bubbles lunging for him.

He waited until she was close. He noticed that her mouth opened, about to scream. His eyes glowed, and laser shot her point blank.

She screamed. Not the sonic scream, but a scream of pain as laser engulfed her, and she fell to the ground. Boomer let himself fall to the ground, and drilled her into the pavement below. When they were on the ground, he punched her repeatedly in the head.

"Take that! And that! You meanie! You sissy! You stealer of clothes!" Boomer shouted as each blow landed on his opponent. "I hope your cootties hurt you and make you cry!"

Bubbles put her arms in front of her face to block the blows. Her eyes glowed red, and in a swift movement, lowered her arms and zapped him with laser. He was thrown back in pain. She followed and gave him a knee on his stomach.

He doubled up in pain, and felt her foot dig into his back. He fell to the asphalt. He saw Bubbles diving for him. He took a nearby lamppost, detached it from the ground, and swung it at her, catching her by surprise as it hit her on the face, sending her crashing into a nearby building.

The blue ruff stood up, pain throbbing throughout his entire body, but pretty sure that she was in greater pain. "You'll gonna pay for that! You played as me, and you sucked! Go and each a roach!" he shouted as he followed her into the rubble of the building.

She was not there. Where was she?

He was answered by a knee to his face, and he fell. This time, he felt blood tricking from his cut lip, as he stared at Bubbles, blood also dripping from her forehead and staining her blonde hair.

"You're the meanie, Boomer! You stole hotdogs, and beat up Blossom while she's alone!"

"We asked, and so what? You beat me up while I was alone, took away my clothes, put me in that light thingy!"

"Well, you're evil and you stole candy!" Bubbles replied. "You're a dumb and mean boy!"

"I am not dumb! And don't call me that! Only my brothers could do so," he said in anger, as he attacked her once more, his head crashing into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her. He grabbed her ankle, spun her around, and slammed her into a nearby building, demolishing it.

He grinned as he plowed into her, giving punch after punch into her stomach and face, but she was able to escape, and gave him another sonic scream. He was forced to cover his ears as he was again thrown away, weakening him further.

"I'm gonna end this," he shouted, flying high in the sky. He formed a giant blue energy ball, in the sky, intending to throw it at the city.

"Don't do it! You'll destroy the city!" Bubbles shouted frantically. "People would die!"

"I don't care, as long as you three sissies with your stupid cootties die with them!" he shouted, and threw it the blonde puff. He didn't want to destroy the city, but he knew that she wouldn't let the ball hit the city.

_C'mon stupid girl, save the city! Catch it and explode!_

Bubbles gasped as she made her own energy ball, and threw it at the gigantic one heading her way. The two energy balls collided, and there was a loud explosion in the air.

"Surprise," she heard a voice from behind her, and his foot connected with her head, sending her down to the concrete sidewalk. He followed her into the ground, and laser eyed her point blank, eliciting a painful scream from her counterpart. He then lifted her up by her leg, and swung her into a building, before moving right in front of her and giving her punch after punch in the stomach.

He threw her into the ground, and went into the sky, intending to create another energy ball to finish off his counterpart. Despite the beating that she took, she was still conscious. He was weak, but she was weaker.

He smirked, but before he could do anything, he heard his brother shout. "BOOMER, THIS IS BAD!"

He looked at his black haired brother, and to his horror, he was carrying Brick, unconscious, followed by Buttercup, and Blossom. He looked at Bubbles, who was down but not out. She joined her sisters.

…

* * *

_**6\. Butch v. Buttercup** _

Earlier…

"C'mon, sissy!"

Butch twitched in excitement as Buttercup charged him. He howled happily as he took a defensive position, not something he usually does but without orders, he will not attack.

The green puff initiated the fight by aiming a kick at his head. He raised his right hand and easily blocked it. He grinned sadistically, as he buried his left fist on her stomach. She staggered in pain, yet recovered quickly enough to avoid his next punch, aimed at her head. She ducked, and punched him hard in his stomach, causing him to jump back, before creating an energy ball and throwing it at the green puff.

Buttercup jumped to her left, avoiding the energy ball, and formed an energy ball of her own. She threw it at her opponent. He made an energy shield and grinned as it absorbed and dissipated the attack. His eyes glowed, and red laser shot from his eyes, though his shield, hitting her.

"What the? You gotta be kidding me! Your own energy attacks go through your shield, and mine don't?" she cried in astonishment.

"Drink it in, Butters!" he scoffed as he began pumping his first in the air, an energy ball forming, and threw it at the green clad girl.

She dodged it, and closed the gap between them. She grabbed him, and prepared to headbutt her counterpart. She slammed her head through the shield, passing through it without any problem, and stopped her head one inch from his face.

"Guess physical attacks go through your stupid shield!"

Her eyes glowed, and he suddenly found himself engulfed in laser.

"AHHHHH!" he shouted, but her gripped tightened, and she swung her head back with as much force as possible. She smashed it against his noggin, making him feel dizzy. She released him, but there was no reprieve as it was followed by a kick to the head, to the stomach, and an elbow to his back as he was bent over, sending him to the concrete below.

Before he could recover, he felt both of her feet on his tummy, sending him deeper into the sewers and into the rails of an underground railroad. To get her off, he looked at the toughest puff, and laser shot her point blank, and she retreated.

Gathering as much energy as he could, he flew into her, smashing both his fists into her back, eliciting a painful scream that made the green eyed ruff grin. He crashed her into a building, got her legs, swung her around and tossed her up in the air.

He followed, and kicked his right foot into her head, sending the toughest puff into the pavement below.

"Had enough?" he laughed.

"Not on your life," she spat as she flew into him, only to be stopped by an energy ball that he threw into her path. The explosion hurt her and threw her back into the concrete, only to be met by Butch, who smiled, as he grabbed her head, and gave her one sickening headbutt. It made him a bit dizzy, but it was okay. It was revenge for the earlier headbutt she gave to him. He stared into the back of her head, before laser beams shot out and hit it.

She screamed as pain engulfed her being.

He attacked her with more physical assaults. A punch to her stomach. A kick to her head. More punches to her face. He threw her high in the air, and prepared to finish her. He created a giant energy ball, and threw it at the green puff.

But it was a mistake. She, despite being weakened, was able to dodge it, and it continued on harmlessly into space. She shot up in the air, desperate to have some breathing room. She was tough, but Butch, to her distaste, was just as tough, and in some cases, even tougher.

She was losing. He knew it.

Butch grinned and followed her into the air. The battle transformed into an aerial battle as he attacked her head on. Buttercup was able to block the first punch, but not the second. She retaliated and gave a kick to his stomach, but he blocked the follow up hook to his head. He gave a left hook on her cheek, connecting, but she recovered and landed her own straight left into his forehead.

She rammed her head into his tummy, knocking the wind out of him, and leaving him clutching his stomach in pain. She followed it up by a kick to the back of his head, and he crashed into the concrete below. Before he could react, she was upon him, sending punch after punch against his face. She finished by grabbing his arm, and threw him to the sky.

Luckily, he was able to stop his ascent and threw a laser ball at the charging Buttercup. The green puff avoided it, and closed the gap between them, giving an uppercut to his chin that nearly dislocated his jaw.

She then swung her body, delivering a roundhouse kick to his head from her left foot, and another swing and her right foot connected to his face. She grinned as things seemed to be going her way, and prepared another swing. Her left foot spun to smash his head, but it stopped. She looked, and he caught it with both his hands, with a sick grin on his face.

His eyes glowed red, and she felt herself hurting as laser poured from his eyes into her exposed body, his hands' firm grip on her left ankle never relaxing. He then held her limp body upside down with his left hand.

She looked at him, and tried her laser eyes.

Only for him to put up his shield.

He began pounding her up-side-down form with his right hand like she was a literal punching bag.

She was going.

He knew it.

That was the advantage of the Rowdyruff Boys over the Powerpuff Girls. They were always a little bit stronger than the Powerpuff Girls. They had beaten the girls before in a straight fight. The girls, hadn't. They won before, but only after using tricks and outsmarting them, but never a straight and fair fight. He was weak, dizzy, and hurting all over, but he knew Buttercup was way worse.

He threw her to the ground, and prepared to finish her off before she could recover.

He looked around to see his brothers do the same to their counterparts. Boomer was doing his part, and Brick…

Butch paled as he saw his leader on the ground, unconscious, and Blossom heading straight for him at a sickening speed, obviously intending to kill him. All thoughts of finishing off his counterpart vanished from his mind as he raced towards his brother. He formed a ball of energy, and threw it at the pink puff.

"What the?" she said after she was hit. She momentarily stopped her dive to her counterpart, to see her assailant.

It was enough for Butch to pick up his brother.

"BOOMER, THIS IS BAD!" he shouted.

He joined his blond brother, and the two looked at their counterparts, and Blossom. Buttercup and Bubbles were beaten up, weaker than Butch and Boomer, but Blossom…

Blossom was fresh, and seemingly without a scratch.

What had happened to Brick?

* * *

_**7\. Blossom vs Brick** _

…

Earlier…

Brick prepared for Blossom's assault. He saw the kick coming to his left, so he prepared to raise his left hand to block. Yet before he could fully raise his hand, her foot connected with his cheek, and he was thrown far away.

Hurt, he stood up, and attacked her, but his punch was avoided. He swung his foot, intending to plant it on her stomach, but she moved back and easily avoided his offense.

Was he slow today?

His eyes glowed, and shot at Blossom, but it was easily counteracted by her own laser eyes. A tug of war laser attack commenced, and both pink and red supers pumping as much energy into it to try to overwhelm the other.

At first it was a draw. It was even to his seeming advantage. His laser inched close and closer into her. Then he saw her smile, and suddenly, her laser and energy became so much stronger. His own energy was easily pushed back, and he felt the sensation of being hit by a powerful laser attack.

He screamed in pain, and he backed off a bit.

His body was hurting, and he was weaker than before. Blossom was barely scratched. He knew that a simple laser attack shouldn't do so much damage.

He knew it! His energy was low! He lacked sleep!

"Brick, Brick, Brick! _Give up_ already," Blossom said with an air of superiority as floated in the air. She looked down at him, literally and figuratively. "You know you can't win this one."

He knew that already. But he wasn't giving up.

"Me give up? To a _dumb_ Powerpuff like you? You're weaker than us!" he taunted.

"Look at you! Do you really think that you are weaker than me? Especially after you _haven't slept_ at all last night? How many hours did you sleep?"

_How did she?_

"How did I know? Look at your eye bags," she said.

"So what?"

"So it means that you are weak. I had a good night's sleep last night, and I will take my sweet revenge on you, dumb ruff!"

"Who you callin' dumb?"

"You. Especially now. You dare expose yourself after having no energy because you partied somewhere by yourself without your brothers? Your brothers are full of energy, while you are not," she lectured. "That's dumb! D-U-M-B dumb!"

"I'm gonna sock you!"

"But then again, I should've expected that from you. Someone who can't spell dumb surely would not think of such a complicated thing as actually being ready for battle, all the time! You are sooooooo stupid! I am _ashamed_ to call you my counterpart. I am a genius, while you are mentally deficient."

_So she's making up big words to make me feel dumb? Two can play that game._

"Well, you are delecant yourself! A smurgarent sissy!"

He knew those words didn't exist, but he assumed so did words like expose, or deficient, or eye bags. Well eye and bags do exist, but there's wasn't any bag made to hold eyes, was there? Blossom was just making it up to make her look really smart. She's dumber than Brick the Bludgeoner, that's for sure.

She gave a haughty laugh. "Oh Brick, it's so pitiful that you wallow in your ignorance. Ignorance is bliss they say, and it applies to you more than anyone else. After all, that's the only way you could be happy given how stupid and dumb you are! I'm sure you don't even know that you're violating the law."

"Shut up, you califulac crilek!"

"Speaking French? But I don't think you even know that language exists! But just so you know, ignorance of the law is not an excuse! IGNORANCE IS NOT AN EXCUSE! Because if it was so, you three are off the hook, since you're so dumb and stupid, and you don't know anything!"

Thinking that she was just engaging in a battle to make up words, he shouted, "No, it ain't Prench, but it's Arlish!"

Blossom laughed. A mocking laughter. "You are a riot, Brick, but I'm sure you weren't making a joke. You're perfectly serious. Because you're the joke."

Brick gritted his teeth. He needed a way out of this. He was going to lose. He _knew_ that. But he does not want to die. Or be taken captive by the Powerpuff Girls. He looked at his brothers. They were doing well. Perhaps he could buy time by talking and talking until his brothers could dispose of their counterparts and they could take Blossom all at once?

"Well, you're the joke anyway! You never beat us in a fight without resorting to tricks!" he shouted.

He could see Blossom's eyes dart sideways, looking at their siblings.

"You're just too stupid to fall for such simple strategies," she said. She smiled, then suddenly moved and Brick found her right wrist buried in his stomach.

The wind was knocked out of him, and he fell to his knees, clutching his tummy in pain. Then he felt her feet give him a hard kick on his chest, giving him more pain and throwing him into a building. The concrete cracked, but did not break. He felt bones breaking. He coughed and blood poured out of his mouth.

"Understand this, Ruff! You're never a threat! You're never our equal in any way! You are evil! You will never ever win against us!" Blossom declared as she grabbed his shirt and pulled his face to hers, her pink orbs staring into his red ones.

He smirked. "Sez you! We already beat you before, and we'll do so again!"

His eyes glowed, and laser eyed his counterpart point blank.

His smile disappeared when it didn't have any effect.

He was very weak.

Blossom dropped him. "Let's see. I'm going to give you a chance. A free shot. Make it count."

She dropped her defenses and put her hands down.

"You're stupid to do that!" he shouted as he gathered his remaining energy and punched her in the face.

It did not even faze her.

He gave another kick. He hit her on the stomach.

She did not even move.

"You are pathetic," she said, her pink orbs staring into his disbelieving red eyes. She looked at her sisters and their fight against his brothers.

She, in a movement too fast for the ruff to see, went behind him. He felt a powerful pain in the back of his head, and his vision became black.

* * *

_**8\. Defeat and Retreat** _

…

Butch looked at the three Powerpuffs above them. Blossom was in the middle, a smirk appearing on her face, without a scratch. Bubbles was on her left, weak and beaten up, but still strong enough to fight Boomer for a few minutes. Buttercup was also weak, and she would be defeated if she fought him alone. But Blossom was with them, and she could easily defeat either of them in their weakened state.

He knew what he must do. Yet he did not want to seem a coward. He hesitated.

Fortunately, the decision was made for him.

"RUN!" Boomer shouted, fear evident in his eyes, as he dove to the streets below.

He decided it would be better to be a coward than to die or be captured, and he flew after his brother. He found him hiding in a narrow alley.

"What should we do, big bro?" he asked. "I don't wanna die! Or be put in that light again!"

"Hey Rowdyruffs! Come out, come out wherever you are!" Buttercup shouted.

"Yeah, meanies! Come out!" Bubbles added.

"You can't hide forever!" they heard Blossom shout.

There was a loud crash in the distance, and they heard screaming. It gave the two ruffs hope.

"Oh my God! A monster!" they heard Bubbles shout, gasping.

The boys looked at the direction of the sound, and there was a giant lizard monster attacking the city near the sea. The green ruff hoped that the girls would prioritize the monster over them.

"Girls, let's save the city!"

Butch could almost cheer Blossom for her decision.

"But what about the boys?" asked Buttercup, still in a loud voice.

_Forget about us!_

"We'll get them next time. Saving the city from the monster is top priority," Blossom answered. Butch could swear there was a hint of disappointment in her voice even as he sighed in relief. He looked at Boomer. Hope had returned to his dark blue orbs.

"Hurry! The monster is destroying the beach district!" Bubbles shouted in panic.

Butch desperately hoped that they would attend to the monster first.

_Leave, you cowards! Please leave us alone!_

"Let's go girls!" Blossom commanded, and the two ruffs saw the three puffs fly toward the monster.

Butch looked at his blond brother. His dark green eyes looked into Boomer's dark blue ones, and nodded.

Both flew as fast as they could towards the forest, towards Fuzzy's shack.

Towards home.

He looked at the city as they left. The girls were having a bit more trouble than before, since only Blossom was fully fit to fight.

He looked at Brick, slumped over his shoulder. What was wrong with his brother?

They reached the shack and immediately put his brother to a "bed"—a mattress without any sheets, and covered him with dirty cloths—their blankets. Boomer came with some wood, and put it on the fireplace. He used his eyebeams to light up a fire.

"Watch over him, lil bro," he said.

"Where you goin'?"

"Getting some grub."

"You gonna steal?"

"And risk getting caught by three powderpuffs? Nah. I'm gonna kill some critters," the green ruff answered.

Butch went deep into the forest, and immediately saw what he was looking for.

A small deer. He crept close to it. The deer spotted him, and galloped away.

It was futile.

The ruff easily overtook him, and snapped its neck. He carried it back to just outside the cabin. There, he skinned the carcass, and extracted the meat and placed it on Fuzzy's tub. He incinerated the liver, intestines and other organs. The fur he put in another place. It would be useful as blankets and coats during cold weather.

He used a large machete to cut the meat into strips, and spread the said strips on the tub like it was a giant pan. The green ruff used his laser eyes to cook the meat, using small amounts of power and heat to do so.

It was not the first time he did so. All three learned how to utilize their powers to cook meat since they stole the shack from Fuzzy. It was one of the few things that Fuzzy was able to teach them, in exchange for untying him and letting him permanently leave "his property".

After a few minutes, the meat began to smell good. He increased the power to increase the heat, noting that the metal tub was now red hot, until he judged that the meat was ready to eat

"Is it done yet?" Boomer asked as he opened the door.

"Not yet, now go back and watch our leader, dummy!"

"Call me when it's done!"

"Dumb idiot," Butch grumbled. He went to the woods and took three wooden stakes. He used a mild form of laser to sterilize it. It would be used as a fork since the meat was too hot to touch.

"Hey, he's waking up!" he heard his brother shout.

"Because you're too noisy, idiot!" he replied as he went inside. Boomer was looking at the redhead.

Butch joined him, and was about to say something when they heard their brother make some kind of noise. His eyes slowly opened, and his red orbs were staring at both of them.

"What happened? You beat Buttercup and Bubbles?"

Butch knew that it would crush his pride to learn that he was the only one who lost. He hesitated, considered fibbing about what really happened, but he hated lying to his brothers. So he nodded. And he almost regretted it upon seeing his brother's red eyes get deflated.

"We're sorry, big brother!" Boomer said, sounding ashamed. "I didn't beat up Bubbles fast enough and I didn't get to help you!"

"Same here," Butch whispered. He guessed that was Brick's plan all along.

"I… I got beaten up," he said, and the green ruff could see how crushed the spirit of his brother was.

"I'm sure that Pink Eyes did some trick and did not play fair," Butch reassured. "They're pathetic and weak!"

Brick's eyes seemed to brighten at that suggestion. "Yeah. We're still stronger than the girls. We're still better."

"We'll get 'em next time!" Boomer reassured. "They're meanies! Only we should be meanies, since we're evil, and they're goody two shoes. Goody two shoes shouldn't be mean! We outta kick them and learn em a few lessons!"

"Hey, what's that I smell?" asked the leader.

"Meat. Deer."

"Oh venison?" Brick asked.

"What?" Butch replied.

"Meat from a deer. Just like pork is meat from a pig, or beef from cow?"

"Dunno what you're talking about," the green ruff replied.

"Where'd you learn that?" asked Boomer.

"Oh I heard someone talk that while I was swipin' something from the meat shop," he said as he got up, still sore from the beating he took, and walked out. He took one of the stakes Butch made, and impaled one of the strips of venison on the still hot tub.

The other two ruffs did too, and they ate their dinner in silence.

* * *

_**9\. Stupid Rowdyruffs!** _

_Two days later, August 12, 2004, Thursday…_

Brick looked at the library. It was about six in the evening, about an hour after it closed. He really shouldn't be here. He really shouldn't leave his two brothers alone. Pinky and her sisters could spot him and he'd be in the same spot Boomer was when he was caught alone.

But he wanted to go here. He _needed_ it. Two days without reading, without knowing something new, was excruciating. So he and his brothers ate dinner at a very early hour of five in the afternoon so he could come to the library early, and go home early too so he could have enough sleep and avoid his mistake.

His mistake…

It was his mistake that led to the defeat of the Rowdyruff Boys. Not that he lacked sleep, only that he was stupid enough to expose himself and his brothers to the possibility of being spotted by the Powerpuffs in the open while he lacked energy. It rankled him that he was the weak link in that fight, but also proud of Butch and Boomer for beating their counterparts. That confirmed to him that they were stronger than the Powerpuff Girls.

One of these days, their enemies will run out of tricks, and true strength will be victorious.

And Brick will step on them, laughing at their faces, proclaiming their victory.

And he would shove Blossom's face in the dirt! He got so mad at that girl! Who does she think she was? Thinking herself so mighty! And smart! She'd resorted to making up words! He showed her! She got so mad at his cleverness she decided to beat him up instead.

He was the smartest one! Smarter than any dumb powderpuff. And with him reading all the time, the gap will only grow wider.

So he got beaten up. So what? He was fully healed within a day. Chemical X made sure of that.

He got his paperclip, and entered through the terrace door. He flew to the kids section, and began reading.

He picked _World History for Kids_ and settled on the sofa.

His eyes were glued as he found out about the past. Alexander the Great. Julius Caesar. Augustus. Attila. Charlemagne. George Washington. Hitler. Kennedy.

He found his new favorite subject.

He finished 300 pages, with lots of pictures and big fonts suitable for seven year olds, in two hours.

Then he went for _United States History for First Grade._

Again he couldn't stop reading. The Thirteen Colonies. The Revolution. The Civil War. The World Wars. The Cold War.

He finished 200 pages in a little over an hour.

He looked around and it was already dark. He switched on the light.

He was pleased with himself. The past was a fascinating story. He wanted to be on the pages of history books one day. His name would be written alongside Napoleon. Alexander. Washington. His picture would grace the history books, and kids in the future would read about him.

He decided he'll go back to English. He browsed the English section, and picked up _English Spelling and Pronunciation_. He began reading it, and began to learn the rules of English orthography.

His mood was positive, humming as more information got imprinted into his brain.

Until he came into the topic of silent letters.

At first, he had nothing to be apprehensive about. He learned about silent e, and how it made the pronunciation of vowels long or short. He already knew that based on his reading, but now he understood why.

Then he went under the heading dummy letters. He noticed an example.

_DUMB._

He stared at the word. Surely, that cannot be right? He was hoping that he was right. Normally, he wouldn't bat an eye, but that word had special significance for him.

If he was right, then he really was smarter than Blossom. If he was wrong… Hopefully, he was not.

Maybe _dumb_ meant something else? And the correct spelling for the synonym of stupid is dum?

He looked around the section. He saw _Dictionary For Kids._

He wondered what it was. He dropped the _Spelling_ book and got the dictionary. He looked at it, and immediately grasped its significance. Perhaps the book could confirm that he was right.

He went to the letter D.

Da, De, Di, Do, Du.

Dual.

Duck.

Dud.

Due.

Duke.

Dull.

_Dumb._

He froze.

He reread the dictionary. He had hoped to find _dum._

It wasn't there.

The word didn't exist.

With dread, he looked at how _dumb_ was defined.

_Dumb. Lacking intelligence or good judgment; stupid; dull-witted._

_Dumb. D-U-M-B._

He quickly went to the S _pelling for Kids_ book. He again read on silent letters.

He still could not believe it. So he went back to the dictionary. He recalled all the words that Blossom supposedly "invented" during their fight.

_Expose. French. Violated. Deficient. Strategies._

All were existing words. And Blossom correctly used them.

He hoped that the words he invented really existed.

_Califulac. Crilek._

It was not there.

He was wrong.

He was not smart. He was _stupid_. _Dumb_. Dumber than Blossom. Dumber than Bubbles even. His belief that he was smart…

Was a myth.

Was just a delusion.

It was Him's fault. He was the one who was their first teacher. After their death, they went to Hell, and Him "trained" them for their return. Part of their training was lessons. Like how to read. And spell. Too bad he only thought them the basics. They wouldn't need to know much after they destroyed the Powerpuffs, after all. That's what Him said.

And he was stupid enough to believe him.

He now knew why he can't beat the girls even if he and his brothers were stronger. The Rowdyruffs were too stupid to win, and the Powerpuffs easily outsmarted them.

He reflected on the insults Blossom gave.

They were not meaningless or baseless banter or ignorant calling of names.

They were true. They really were insulting. He, the Rowdy leader, was worthless. He was an ignoramus who knew nothing. He, not Boomer, deserved the title of Dumber than the Dumbest.

Pinky was not calling him those names just to get into his head or to mess with him. She really was putting him down, looking down upon him upon her high pedestal. Looking down from her high throne. She knows everything. Well, not everything, but she's smarter than him.

Better than him.

She knew more.

He knew nothing.

He was even, before this night, too dumb to know he was dumb.

He saw the book got wet. Tears were pouring from his eyes. It did not matter. How can he have any pride left after he found out that every basis for his ego, for his very identity, turned out to be a lie? He was an idiot. A retard. An imbecile.

"NO! NO!" he shouted. He slowly floated to the sofa, and cried.

* * *

_**10\. The Promise** _

_The next day, August 13, 2004, Friday…_

Boomer opened his eyes, and the first thing he noticed were the red eyes of his brother looking at him.

"Brick?" he asked, yawning. He noticed something about his eldest brother. His crimson eyes had that look that told him that something was going to happen.

His brother had plans.

Big plans.

There was a look of excitement, as if he had discovered something new, yet there was a hint of disappointment.

"Boomer, get up," Brick commanded, and Boomer did as told. It was only then that he noticed that Butch was already awake, standing beside his brother. He had that look that told him that he was just as puzzled as he was.

"What's up?" Boomer asked.

"Everything," his red eyed brother said in a slow, deadly, scary tone.

"What?" Butch asked.

"My brothers, let us do again what we did in Hell. Let's do the promises again, or as I learned, let us swear an oath. You two go first."

"What for?" asked Butch.

"Don't question me," he snapped. "Just do it!"

Butch and Boomer looked at each, and he nodded. Boomer remembered the time when they did it the very first time. They were dead. Boomer rather not recall the circumstance that occasioned it.

Both kneeled, one knee on the floor, their left hand over the chest, their right in a fist, raised towards Brick.

It was position that was taught by one of the friendlier devils in Hell.

"I, Boomer," Boomer began. Butch said the exact same words, but instead said, "I, Butch,"

They continued, "promise to follow you, our brother, our leader, Brick, wherever we are, forever. We will always follow your orders, and do what you say, whether you are right, or whether you are wrong."

The two then stood up. Brick then put one hand on the chest of each brother, his left palm on Boomer, and right one on Butch.

"I promise to lead you, to be the best leader that I could be, and to never, on purpose, let you two down. I will lead you to glory, to victory, and power!"

The three then raised their right hand on the air and began saying in unison the conclusion of their promise.

"I promise to always take care of both my brothers, and never to lie to them on purpose. We will live together, we will die together, and never leave each other! We will kill all those who stand in our way, and help those who stand with us."

Boomer reflected on it. It was the only reason that they survived Him's training. They stuck together no matter what Him threw at them. And they spoke with one voice. That of their leader, Brick. Their experiences with Him etched all the words in the memories.

Nothing, not even their teasing, the fights, the fact that they could be cruel to each other, could break that.

"My brothers, I found out something," he began as soon as the oaths were made.

"What?" asked Butch.

"We are stupid!"

"What? We're not!" Butch protested.

"Shut up! Yes we are. We are idiots! We know nothing. And I hate to say it, those Powerpuff Girls are better than us. At least for now."

Boomer looked at his brother in horror. He was crazy. That was not their brother. He would never admit of such a fact. Not to mention that it was not plain true. The Rowdyruffs were better than the Powerpuffs!

"Don't joke, brother," Butch snapped.

"Oh it's no joke. I found out recently why we can't beat the girls even if we are stronger," said Brick. "It's because they keep outsmarting us. We were too stupid to fall for their tricks."

"That's not true!" Boomer shouted.

Butch was too stunned to even talk.

"No, it's true," said Brick. "We're stupid. We're dumber than the Powerpuff Girls! We're dumber than Bubbles for crying out loud! I am dumber than Bubbles. So are you, Boomer, and Butch. And she's the dumbest of the Powerpuffs!"

The two brothers can't believe what his brother was saying.

"Take that back!" Butch said.

"Make me!"

Butch gritted his teeth, raised his fist, and attacked his brother. Brick caught his lunging arm, walked slightly to the side, and gave a punch on the green ruff's stomach.

"Now listen here, and listen good," Brick stated. "Right now, the Powerpuff Girls are better than us, and smarter than us. So what should we do?"

"We become better than the girls!" Boomer answered.

"Right," Brick said.

"But how?" asked the blue eyed ruff.

Brick grabbed the shirt of Butch. "You Butch, you will become smarter than Buttercup. Promise me that."

Butch glared at him, but he nodded.

"Say it loud!"

" _ **I'm gonna be smarter than Buttercup**_!"

Brick released him.

" _I am going to be better than Buttercup_!" Butch again recited, his voice becoming excited, his body twitching. "I am gonna show that good for nothing Puff that _ **I am better than her in every way**_!"

"That's okay. Now Boom, you are dumb. Dumber than Bubbles. For now. Promise me this. You are gonna be smarter than Bubbles."

"I promise."

"Say it again!"

" _ **I am gonna be smarter than Bubbles, Brick**_!" Boomer nearly shouted. "I am gonna show everyone that I am smarter than Bubbles!"

"Great. Now listen to my promise. I swear, I swear that _**I will be better and smarter than Blossom**_."

Both Boomer and Butch nodded.

"My brothers, we the Rowdyruff Boys, are gonna beat those girls up! But first, we will show them that we are better, and smarter than them! I promise you that!"

"And I promise you that I'll do my part!" Butch shouted, raising fist in excitement

Boomer wondered what this was all about. Still, he trusted his eldest brother. "And I'll do mine! Bubbles will never know what hit her!"

"Good. First thing we gotta do is we should become smart and know things," Brick began.

Boomer paled. That means school. He doesn't want to go to school! Luckily, Butch voiced out his thoughts.

"I hate school! I ain't gonna go to one!" he declared.

"Who says we're gonna go to school? We're gonna learn, and we're gonna know things, and we're gonna be smarter than the girls, without going to school! And I know how!" Brick declared.

Boomer could not help but clap. His brother was planning something, and if it would lead to the Powerpuff Girls getting their butt kicked, he's all for it!

**End of Chapter I**


	2. I - The Ghosts of Townsville Library

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Boomer and his brothers enter an entirely new world of stories and adventures. Are the Ghosts of Townsville Library real? Boomer and Bubbles thinks so. Their siblings does not. So what would happen if the girls meet the ghosts? And who's the ogre and the big bad wolf and Princess too?

**An Education For Power**

* * *

Brick tries to educate himself and his brothers so they can beat the Powerpuff Girls. Chapter 2. Boomer and his brothers enter an entirely new world of stories and adventures. Are the Ghosts of Townsville Library real? Boomer and Bubbles thinks so. Their siblings does not. So what would happen if the girls meet the ghosts? And who's the ogre and the big bad wolf and Princess too?

 **Note:** Please leave a _review_ if you like this story or chapter! Thanks!

* * *

**Book I**

**How to Learn?**

**Chapter II**

**The Ghosts of Townsville Library**

_**11\. Delightful Fairy Tales** _

* * *

Boomer was excited. His big brother Brick promised them that they will learn, and that they would be smarter and better than the stupid Powerpuffs! Brick promised that he would be smarter than Bubbles. But Bubbles was already more stupid than him, so Boomer wondered, why bother?

But Brick told them that they were stupid, and that they were more stupid than the girls, and that they would work to become smarter.

What happened to big brother? He wasn't like this before. He was always confident!

It doesn't matter. Brick was his leader. He would always follow him. He led them through hell and back, and he was always right.

They went to the terrace of the third storey of the library, and Brick used his paper clip to open the door.

"Why don't we just destroy the stupid door?" Butch asked, whispering.

"Cause I don't want anyone to know what we're doing," Brick explained.

"Why?" asked the green ruff.

"Because I want to surprise the girls when they find out that we're better than them!" he replied.

"Yeah! I can't wait to see the look on their faces!" Boomer concurred. Especially Bubbles. He'll show her! Stealing his clothes and trying to be him! Even eating cockroaches! Eww! He would like to shove another slug in her pretty little dress and watch her cry like a baby!

They entered, and his blue eyes widened upon the sight. Books upon books upon books! Just looking at it gave him a headache.

What had Brick been thinking? Was he punishing them? Was he out of his mind? Scratch that! He thought and said that they were stupid and even more stupid than the Powerpuff Girls? _Of course he was out of his mind!_ Someone took over his body!

"Wow!" he said a little loudly. "Books! Stupid books! That's scary!"

That earned him hit to the head from Brick. "Quiet, Boom. Want someone to find us?" he whispered loudly.

Boomer kept quiet as he rubbed his head. A hit from his big brother meant that he did something wrong, or said something stupid. Most probably said something stupid.

But that's okay! After Brick's plan, he won't be stupid anymore! He would be smarter than Bubbles!

Brick led them to a portion called _Elementary Section._

He turned around and began talking softly. "Listen. I have been here twice already. And I've learned so much."

So there's where big brother had been learning his big new words! Cool!

"You're becoming a nerd," Butch remarked, unimpressed.

"Listen, I'd rather be a nerd and be a know-it-all, than a know-nothing," he hissed. "And here are my orders. You will know as much as you can. I'm not saying you should be bookworms, but please, be better than your counterparts."

Butch nodded. "That shouldn't be too hard."

"So what should we do?" Boomer asked.

_Hopefully, go to sleep or play._

Reading was boring. He was already smarter than Bubbles, so why do all of this again? But an order was an order, whether his leader was right or wrong, as long as he wasn't leading them wrong on purpose, he had to follow. For his big brother!

"Glad you asked that, Boom," Brick began. "Him's education for us was lacking. But at least he taught us how to read. Now, get anything, any book, and read. I don't care what. Just read. Okay?"

Boomer was disappointed, but nodded, and so did Butch as Brick switched on the lights.

"So what do we read?" asked Butch.

"I don't know. Anything you like!"

With that, Brick got a book. The title was _Plants and Animals_ _for Kids_.

Boomer got a book besides it. It was called _The Solar System._

He began reading. He immediately closed it. It was boring. Something about planets and stuff.

He put it back. He glanced at the book Brick was reading. Boomer could understand it, but it did not hold his interest.

This was gonna be boring! Only Brick, it seems, found something to do. That was so unfair. How could Boomer learn if all the books were boring? This was stupid! Brick himself said it was stupid just a few days ago. Why did his mind change? _Stupid Rowdy promise to follow the leader at all times!_

His eyes scanned the shelves, and one particular item interested him.

_Children's Stories._

He looked at a book.

_Snow White._

He grabbed it and began reading it. He was more interested in it than the boring ones his leader was reading. And he was entertained too. Still, he found out it was a bit too girly for his taste. Why would that stupid prince kiss the sleeping girl? Did he want to get cooties? And the dwarfs! They should've left Snow White to die! Still, it made him laugh, so there's that.

"Hey Brick?" Boomer asked.

"Read your own book!" his leader snapped.

"Um, Brick, what does queen and witch mean? And what is a dwarf?"

His big brother looked at him, stood up, got a book, and handed it to him.

"It's a dictionary. Look it up!"

"Um, how do I use this dicshawree?" Boomer asked.

"It's dictionary. Okay. You know the alphabet?"

"Yeah. A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z!" he sang. "Him taught us that in Hell!"

"Well, the words here are arranged, just look at the word, and they give you what it means," Brick explained.

"Ah, okay!" Boomer said, grabbing the book.

So what does _Queen_ mean?

_Queen. Woman who rules a country and who usually inherits her position and rules for life_

_She was crowned queen of England._

_the reign of Queen Elizabeth_

_b : the wife of a king_

_the king and his queen_

He looked for W. He looked for the word wicked.

 _Wicked._ Evil. Morally bad.

He was happy to know what those words mean. He then looked for witch, dwarf and prince.

He then appreciated the story even more.

He took another book.

_Cinderella._

He read it in the chair, and began reading with a dictionary besides him.

It was too girly and too sissy-like. A tale Bubbles would surely like! Cinderella was so like Bubbles! Stupid! Why go to a place in a pumpkin and a big tent for clothes? She should've beaten up her two step sisters! So after he finished, he looked for another story.

_The Three Little Pigs_

Now that was a tale he liked. Not stupid and girly like the two stories he previously read.

Three brother pigs! He already liked the premise, and he imagined their enemy was the big bad wolf.

"Whatcha readin', Boom?" Butch asked, peering over his shoulder.

" _The Three Little Pigs,_ " Boomer said with a big grin on his face. "It's about three brothers who make houses made of straw, wood, and brick—"

"Sounds stupid."

"It is not. And what are you readin'? Brick said we should be readin'?"

"I am. Look at this," the green ruff said, and showed Boomer what appeared to be a book with pictures on front. The picture was of a man in blue tights, wearing red underwear over his tights, and a red blanket on his shoulder, with an S on his tights.

"Superman? He looks stupid. Even more so than those powderpuffs!"

"Na ah! He's cool! He is violent! He kicks butt! Wham! Kablam! Kersplat!" he began saying as he pumped his fists though the air.

"Well, it's late," Brick finally said, interrupting their talk. "Time to sleep."

"Aw! I want to read more stories! They are the most fun!" Boomer protested, surprising even himself.

"Yeah! And those books from the comic book section? Wow! Villains, and even heroes, are so cool!" the green ruff agreed. "I still have to read about _Batman_ , then the _Flash_ , then _Spiderman_!"

"Glad you like it, but it's late, and we've got to hit the sack," the redhead explained.

"So we're gonna leave?" Boomer asked.

"No. See here," Brick said, pointing to a nice looking chair. "This is a sofa. And there's another one. One of them is long enough for two of us, and it's warm enough in here so we won't need blankets."

"I dunno," said Boomer.

"C'mon, try it!" Brick ordered.

Boomer hesitated, but finally gave in, sinking into the sofa.

It was soft. It was very comfortable. Much more so than the mattress at home. "This feels so good!" he exclaimed. If only for the sofas, he would want to spend all his nights in the library.

"Yeah. I can't go back to our shack after lying down in this!" Butch exclaimed as he savored the feel of lying in the soft cushion.

Brick switched off the lights before settling himself in the other chair.

Boomer looked at his brother. He was right! Maybe they will become smarter than those stupid powderpuffs! One thing was for sure. He was having fun. Stories were fun. Even if the bad guys lose, but it was fun nonetheless. He just would pretend that the good guys were really evil, and the bad guys were good.

…

* * *

_**12\. I'll Blow Your House Down** _

Boomer opened his eyes and saw… Mojo Jojo?

"Wake up, you good for nothing boy!" the monkey said. "Get up! Rise and shine! Awaken from your slumber and feel the morning fresh air!"

Boomer nodded as he woke up and walked toward the living room of their home. His two brothers were there.

"What's up, Pops?" asked Brick.

"What's up is that I am throwing you three useless mouths out of my home. Now get out and seek your fortune?"

"What?" was the only thing Boomer could say before they were dumped unceremoniously out of their home.

"So what do we do?" Butch asked.

"We build a house! To protect ourselves from the wolves!" Brick declared.

"With what?" asked the green ruff.

"I know! Let's use straw!" Boomer proclaimed. He felt so smart thinking about it.

"No, that's stupid! We should use wood!" Butch asserted.

"Both of you are stupid. We will use brick!" their leader ordered.

"The only reason why you wanted to use brick is because of your name!" Butch accused.

"Well I want my house to be made of straw! So there!" Boomer said, stumping his foot, and running away.

Stupid brothers, thinking they're better! He'll show them! He'll build a house made of straw that would not only give him a home, but protect him from the big bad wolf.

He went to the fields and gathered as much straw as he could. He used that to build a straw house.

He stepped back, proud of what he's done. It looked really nice, and looked pretty comfortable. He entered. It was even better.

He heard a growl. It was a wolf. He hurriedly locked the door.

"Hey Boomer!" a feminine voice called out. "Open the door."

The blond ruff looked out the window, and there was a girl who looked like a wolf, with orange hair, pink eyes, and a big red bow on her head.

"Who are you?"

"I am Blossom the Big Bad Wolf! And I am a Powerpuff! Now open your door!"

"I will not!"

"Little ruff, little ruff, let me come in."

"No, no, not by the hair on my chinny chin chin."

"Then I'll huff, and I'll power puff, and I'll blow your house in."

"Nah, nah, you can't get in!" the blond ruff replied as he looked at the puff wolf outside.

She drew a deep breath, and blew hard.

The straw house began to shake. And then it collapsed, to his horror.

"My house! You destroyed it!" he cried.

"And that's not all that I am going to do! I am gonna take you and put you in that light! And you won't ever escape!" she said, laughing evilly.

Boomer screamed before getting on his feet and running as fast as he could. He saw his brother's wooden house.

"Let me in! Let me in! Or she's gonna get me!" he shouted as he pounded on the door. The door suddenly opened and he fell in.

"What's up, bro?" Butch said, his green eyes looking at him in amusement.

"Blossom! Blossom's coming!"

"Whoa! Calm down, dude! Who's Blossom?"

"She's the big bad wolf! She huffed, and power puffed, and blew my house down!"

"What? She blew ya house and it went down?"

"Yeah!"

He laughed. "I hate to say it, but I TOLD YOU SO! Straw is useless! Wood is the best!"

He heard a voice that filled him with dread. "Oh little ruff! Boomer! Come out, come out wherever you are!"

"It's her! It's the big bad wolf Blossom!" he shouted, slamming the door of Butch's house before locking it down.

"Oh there you are! And it looks like you led me to another ruff! Now come out and we can go to the light where the Professor could kill you like the evil little boys that you are!" they heard Blossom shout.

"Make us!" Butch shouted. "And unlike Boom's house here, my home is way tougher! It's made of wood!"

"Oh really? Then I'll just have to do it!"

"Do what?" asked Butch, with a frantic Boomer at his side.

"One more chance. Little ruffs, little ruffs, let me come in."

"No, no, not by the hair on my chinny chin chin," Boomer shouted back.

Butch hit his brothers' head.

"Ow! What gives?"

"That's stupid!"

Blossom shouted. "Then I'll huff, and I'll power puff, and I'll blow your house down."

Boomer dreaded what will happen next. They heard a loud breathing-in by the wolf girl puff thing outside, then there was a loud wind, and the next thing they knew, the house of wood collapsed.

"I told you I'm gonna blow your house down! The force of the wind from the mouth has a greater pressure than the strength of your rickety houses," Blossom explained, her pink eyes bearing down on the two ruffs.

They screamed and ran deeper into the forest, until they reached the brick house of their eldest brother, Brick.

"Let us in! Let us in!" both shouted until the door opened. Both hurried in and locked the door behind them.

"What has got into both of you?" Brick demanded.

"She's coming!" Butch replied, rather frantically.

"Who?"

"The big bad wolf!" Boomer said. "She blew both our houses down!"

"Well, I hate to say it, but—"

"Don't start!" Butch interrupted. "Yeah, you told us so! Now shut up!"

Brick just grinned.

"Open the door, you stupid ruffs!" big bad Blossom shouted.

"No, no, not by the hair on my chinny chin chin," Brick, this time, shouted the same words, which made Boomer nearly giggle.

Butch dare not hit his leader.

"Then I'll huff, and I'll power puff, and I'll blow your house down."

They could see through the window that she took a deep breath, and suddenly blew.

The house remained standing.

"My house is made of brick!" the eldest ruff shouted. "Like me! So you can't do anything about it!"

"We'll see about that!" she said, they saw her climb the house, and they heard her footsteps on the roof.

"She's going through the chimney!" Boomer said in panic.

However, Brick was, coincidentally, boiling a pot of water on the fireplace. Boomer got the lid, and slammed the pot shut just as Blossom fell on the boiling water.

"Boomer, wake up!" he saw his leader's red eyes staring at him.

Boomer opened his eyes, and they were in the library.

It was all a dream.

But it was so real! And so fun!

"Wake up, Boom. Look at the window," he pointed.

Boomer looked, and he could see that the sky was red.

"What? Is it sunset already?"

"It's sunrise, idiot!" Butch said as Brick smacked him for saying something stupid. "Let's go. We don't want to be caught."

Boomer just nodded as he pulled himself from the soft, warm couch. They flew out of the building the same way they came in, Brick locking the terrace to ensure that no one would find out that they were there.

Boomer wanted to go back. So many stories were just waiting to be read!

He looked at the direction of the sea. He could see the sun, rising.

He had never seen a sunrise before.

Neither did his brothers.

All three stared in wonder as the sun slowly rose above the waters.

_It was awesome!_

But he was sleepy. Too sleepy. He gazed at the sun as he flew toward their shack.

He went to the mattress. It was harder than he remembered. He wished he was back at the soft couch of the library. He closed his eyes, and went to sleep.

* * *

_**13\. What Did We Learn?** _

_The next day, August 14, 2004, Saturday…_

It was afternoon, and they just had lunch. They had cooked wild boar, or as his Boomer's big brother Brick called it, pork.

Boomer himself wondered why there weren't having fun outside, beating up people, stealing, making trouble. Both him and Butch were sitting on chairs with Brick standing in front of them.

"Now, let's begin. Did you enjoy the library?"

"Oh yeah! That couch! It was so soft! I want to sleep there again!" Boomer replied.

"Yeah! The couch was the best! We should steal one!" Butch agreed.

"Yes. The couch was great," Brick said. "So what else?"

"Um, I like the stories! They're really fun!" Boomer said.

"And the comics! That was the best! So much violence!" Butch, twitching, added.

"So, want to go back there?" asked the leader.

"Would we! Yes! We should move there!" the blond ruff answered.

"Yup. Double yup! The couch alone is worth it!" the black haired ruff agreed.

"Yeah. So let's see if you learned anything. Let's start with words. Let's start with you, Boomer. Tell me, what new words did you learn last night?"

"Um, let's see," Boomer began, wracking his brain for anything that he learned. "Cast Lee."

"Cast Lee?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. Spell it."

"C-A-S-T-L-E."

"What does it mean?"

"A Cast Lee is the place where a king lives!"

Brick took a book from pocket. Boomer looked at it and read the title.

 _English Pocket Dictionary_.

"Where did you get that?" asked Boomer.

"I stole it from some schmuck who was reading it while walking," Brick snapped. "Oh yeah. Cast Lee. Spelling is correct. And yeah, definition is close enough. Okay. Another new word."

"Prince. P-R-I-N-C-E. It means a son of a king."

Brick looked at the dictionary. "Very good, Boom. One more, and we'll go to Butch."

"Big Bad Wolf. B-I-G-B-A-D-W-O-L-F! That's what those Powerpuff Girls are! Big bad mean wolves!"

Boomer was proud by what he said, but the look on his brothers indicate that maybe he was wrong. Well, the Powerpuff Girls were wolves. His dream told him so. And the girls did treat him and his brothers like the wolf treated the three little pigs!

"I agree with that, Boom, those girls are bad wolves," Brick grinned.

"Yeah! Wolves!" Butch agreed.

"Okay, Butch. Give me a new word."

"Cave. C-A-V-E. That's where Batman lives."

Brick blinked. "Come again?"

"That's where Bruce Wayne, who in reality is Batman, lives! Duh!" Butch declared as a matter-of-factly.

"Idiot! It means a hollow in the earth, especially one opening more or less horizontally into a hill, mountain!" Brick said, reading the dictionary, before hitting Butch in the head.

"Hey, what's that for?"

"For being an idiot and not using the dictionary like I told you so back in the library! Okay. Give me another word."

"Cape. C-A-P-E. It's the cool red blanket that Superman wears on his neck and looks so cool when he flies!"

Brick looked at his book. "Spelling's correct. And definition's close enough I guess. Okay, one last word."

"Invulnebity. I-N-V-O-L-N-E-R-A-T-Y. It means you cannot be hurt."

Brick searched for the word. "Well, you got the meaning right, but it's called invulnerability, and you got the spelling wrong."

"Well, this sucks!" Butch pouted.

"Too bad. I'm leader, and what I say, goes!" Brick snapped.

"Yeah, I know. We'll follow you, right or wrong," Butch replied. "Doesn't mean I'd have to like it or I can't complain."

"Glad you know," Brick snapped. "Still, want to know something?"

"What is it?" Boomer asked.

"Want to know what a Powderpuff is?"

Even Butch had to raise his eyebrow. "Oh do tell."

Brick turned the page of his dictionary. "Powderpuff. A small, round piece of soft material that is used to put powder on your face or body."

The three boys looked at each other, and burst out laughing.

* * *

After that, they three told each other what they read. Brick gave a lecture on what he'd read, and Boomer was mostly bored. He listened, and got most of it, but he was not that interested.

The favorite part of the blue ruff was the story section, specifically the Fairy Tales.

Butch told them about the comics. He story of Superman and Batman. Boomer enjoyed how Butch told the tales, and he could see that Brick was interested too.

"And don't you know that this Superman fellow has almost the same powers we have?"

"Oh really?" asked Brick.

"Yeah. He can fly. He is very strong! And you know the cool thing about it?"

"What?" asked Boomer, entranced by the tale of his middle brother.

"I found out what our attacks are called!"

Brick raised his eyebrow.

"Yeah. The light that came out from our eyes that hurt and win our fights? That's called laser. We have laser eyes. Or you can call it eyebeams! Or heat vision."

"That's cool," Boomer praised.

"And he has a bunch of powers that we don't have yet. He has x-ray vision! It's so cool! You can look beyond walls! He can turn coal into diamonds!"

"X-ray vision," Brick repeated, deep in thought. "Sounds cool. So how does the power work?"

"Well, you look at a wall, and you see what's beyond it," Butch explained. "That's how Superman did it."

The green ruff looked at the wall of their shack. His eyes narrowed, and he suddenly smiled.

"I got it! I got it!" Butch exclaimed.

"You do?" asked Brick in astonishment.

"Yeah. I could see the trees! And the animals! It's neat! You should try it!"

Boomer looked at the wall, and concentrated.

"Yeah I got it!" Brick said. "How about you, Boomer?"

"How do you do it?" asked the blond ruff.

"Idiot! Use your eyes. There's a switch that could turn it on."

The blue eyed brother nodded and concentrated. He tried all sorts of things with his eyes when suddenly, he got it. He found the switch. He saw the trees, and the animals. A big grinned formed in the boy's face.

"That is so nice!" Boomer shouted, jumping up and down in happiness.

"This x-ray vision thing really would be handy," said Brick, looking around the house, but Boomer could tell that he had his x-ray on and was looking at the forest. "Especially if you want to steal things without being discovered."

The boys spent the next hour or so experimenting with their new power. They flew above the forest around the shack. Boomer was delighted when he could see the animals run around on the forest floor despite being covered by the leaves of the trees. Then he adjusted his vision, and he could see, though in black and white, some of the things buried underground.

He then flew over the lake, and he found out that he could, by adjusting his eyes, see the fish and other creatures of the lake, all the way to the bottom of the body of water. He was able to see many sunk boats, and many garbage that had settled on the lake floor.

He looked at his brothers, and he was sure that they were doing the same.

After an hour, they returned to the shack. "Okay, that was fun! So, any other powers you might have found, Butch?"

"Superman can turn coal into diamonds," Butch explained.

"That's useless," Brick replied. "Who wants bling? What else?"

"Superhearing! I read that Superman could really hear things that we can't hear. Let's try it."

So the three boys did so. Boomer concentrated on turning something on his ear, and was pleasantly surprised when he found it. He turned it on, and suddenly, he was able to hear the sounds of animals running outside. He practiced for the next few hours, and learned how to direct the direction of the superhearing like a microphone, and how to adjust it so it could turn the volume of the sound up or down.

* * *

_**14\. The Duke of Destruction** _

That evening…

Boomer scanned the books in the _Stories For Children_ section. He got a book that seemed interesting— _The Ghosts of Townsville Library_.

He read it. After reading it, he looked around fearfully, and went to his brother, who was reading a science book.

"Brick, I think we better leave," he whispered.

His red eyed brother looked at him unbelievingly. "Why should we?"

"This place… this place is… _haunted_."

"What?"

"There are ghosts that haunt this place. They protect the books from being stolen at night," Boomer said.

"Are you out of your mind?" the leader asked.

"Look at this," Boomer said, shoving the book to Brick. "This tells the story!"

Brick looked the book.

"Yes. The story."

"See? There are ghosts! They would do bad things if we don't leave!"

"As I said. A story. Not news. Or history. But story. It's just as real as the _Three_ _Little_ _Pigs_ or _Snow_ _White_. There are no such things as ghosts!"

"But—"

"I don't care! Just read something else! We aren't leaving! Unless you want to go to school to learn!"

That scared Boomer way more than the idea of ghosts ever did.

"I don't wanna go to school."

"So choose. Ghosts, or school!"

"Ghosts!"

"Then go back to your reading!" Brick growled, irritated at being interrupted. "We're Rowdyruffs! A measly ghost shouldn't scare us!"

Boomer nodded, but was unsure. He looked around, and the place seemed much scarier than before. He imagined that there were ghosts hiding behind every corner and bookshelf. But they weren't stealing books, were they? So the ghosts won't have reason to haunt them, or worse, hurt them. The book never stated that the ghosts never do anything other than scare the intruders, but Boomer's sure that the ghosts could actually hurt those that won't leave after being warned.

Hoping that the ghosts won't haunt them, Boomer put the book back on the shelf and got another one.

 _Scooby Doo_.

He enjoyed the story. At first Boomer thought the ghost was real. Then he found out that it was fake. And it was all a lie.

So he began to think. What if, like in _Scooby Doo,_ the ghosts of the library were not real? But it had gotta be real! The book said so! He hasn't seen them, but so what? They haven't done anything that might make the ghost mad. After all, they weren't stealing books, right?

He shook his head. Perhaps there _was_ a ghost. Perhaps there was _none._ He still thought there was one. But he decided he won't think about it until the ghosts actually showed themselves. And the ghosts won't show themselves until they try to steal books.

He got another book. _Puss in Boots._ Then _The Industrious Hen._ Then _Dick Whittington and His Cat_.

It was nearly ten when Brick called a halt to all the reading, and told them that they should get some sleep. Once again, Boomer settled on the soft, comfortable couch. He closed his eyes, and he was fast asleep.

He opened his eyes. He looked around. He was in a forest. He was wearing rags. And the only companion was a cat.

A cat with red hair.

With red eyes?

"Boomer, want to get rich?" the cat, with Brick's voice, said.

"Huh? A talking cat?"

"Well duh! I'm a cat, and I talk. Name's Brick, and Master, I am here to make you rich! If you would give me your boots!"

Boomer smiled at Brick, even if a cat, calling him master. So he removed his boots, and gave it to the cat.

"The first thing we have to do is to catch a rabbit!" he declared, getting a sack. He was able to make a trap using a sack, and caught a big fat rabbit.

"That's great! Our breakfast would be—" Boomer spoke.

"Master! This isn't for us!" Brick said. "Trust me. Wait for me here, and do what I say!"

Boomer nodded as he watched the red cat disappear with the sack of rabbit.

* * *

…

Brick went to the castle where the King resides. "I demand the see the King!"

Luckily, the sight of a talking cat was so unusual that the guards brought him to the court.

"King John XI the Professor of the Utonium Dynasty, I am your humble servant," Brick said, taking off his hat, and bowing to the king.

"A talking cat?" the black haired king exclaimed upon seeing Brick. "That's scientifically impossible!"

"That I am. I am here to give you a gift from my master!" he announced, before getting the dead rabbit from the sack.

"Wow! That's the fattest rabbit I've ever laid my eyes on!" King John the Professor exclaimed upon seeing the rabbit. "My thanks to your master. By the way, what's the name of your master?"

"My master's name is Boomer, the Duke."

"Duke of what?" asked the king.

"He's the Duke of Destruction! Inherited his title from a long line of Dukes! The name is from the first duke, who destroyed the enemies of your ancestors, King John the First!"

"And I am King John XI, of the Utonium Dynasty! Tell him that me and my daughter, Princess Bubbles, would like to visit his estate and castle!"

"I am sure he will be most delighted!" the cat said before he left.

* * *

…

"What? You told the king that I am a duke? But I'm poor! I own my clothes, and you, and nothing more," Boomer protested when he heard the tale.

"Do as I say, master, and you will be the next king!" the cat replied. "You will rule this kingdom, and you will marry the Princess!"

* * *

The next day, Brick brought the blue eyed peasant near a stream besides a road.

"Master, take off your clothes, and go for a dip in the stream?"

"What? Why?"

"Just do as I say!" the cat ordered.

"But the stream is cold!"

"Do it, I order you to!"

"I am your master you can't—"

"DO IT, OR I'LL STRIP YOU MYSELF!" the cat shouted, his red eyes showing his temper.

Frightened, Boomer did as asked, and stripped naked, and took a dip on the stream.

Brick smiled, and hid Boomer's clothes.

"Brick, I-I-I-I-I-I'm feelin' cold!" Boomer said as he shivered.

Brick ignored him as he looked at the open carriage with the king and his daughter. It was going past them.

The red eyed cat jumped in front the vehicle.

"Your Majesty, I am so unfortunate!" the cat shouted.

The king stood up. "Brick, what on earth has happened?"

"My Master the Duke of Destruction was taking a dip on the stream, when we were attacked by robbers! Everything, the horse, the carriage, even the very clothes he was wearing was stolen!"

"That is unfortunate," King John said. "Is that the duke?" he asked, looking at the blond man shivering, naked, his head only visible, in the river.

"He is. He cannot leave because he has nothing to wear."

"Daddy, you've got to help him! Poor boy," Princess Bubbles, with golden hair in pigtails, and big blue eyes, sitting opposite the king, pleaded. "He looked so cold!"

The king agreed, and ordered some of his guards to rush back to the castle and take some clothes. They returned, and helped Boomer change into rich clothes, fit for a duke. They led him to the carriage.

Boomer was awed at seeing the king. He looked at Bubbles, and he blushed.

He bowed. "Y-y-y-y-your Majesty!"

"Your Grace," the king greeted, "could you please ride with us to your castle?"

"Castle?"

"Yes. Brick said that you have a big castle. We're on our way to visit, to thank you for bringing us that delicious rabbit!" John the Professor said. "And this is Princess Bubbles!"

Boomer blushed as he bowed. "Y-y-y-y-your highness!"

"Ah, love at first sight! If your wealth and lands is even as great as Brick said it is, then Bubbles, I think he is worthy of marrying you, Bubbles!"

"Oh Daddy!" the girl blushed at she looked at Boomer, who also blushed.

* * *

…

Brick in the meantime, took a horse to the lands of an ogre. He saw peasants on the field.

"Tell me, peasants! Who owns this land?"

"Hey, this peasant has a name!"

Brick rolled his eyes. "So what's your name?"

"Butch!" the green eyed black haired boy said as he collected the wheat. "And for your information, the land is owned by the ogre."

"Ogre?"

"Don't tell me you don't know her? She's the master of this land! She can change to any form!"

"Even a talking cat?"

"Even a talking—you're the ogre? Sorry, Mistress! I didn't know it was you!" Butch said, kneeling on the ground.

"Well, I'm in a good mood. I won't punish you provided you do as I tell you."

"Anything!"

"When the king asks who the lands belong to, tell him that this belongs to Boomer, Duke of Destruction!"

"Whatever!" he mumbled.

With that, Brick rode on to the castle. He entered, but he was confronted by the ogre. It was a giant girl, with black hair, green eyes, and wearing a green dress.

"You are the famous ogre?" Brick asked.

"Yeah. Name's Buttercup. For being so stupid, I'm gonna kill you and skin you alive, you mangy cat!"

"Wait, before I die, I want to see your powers. I heard you can change into any animal you like!"

"Well, I can," said Buttercup. "What do you want me to change to? I know!"

She changed into a golden lion. The lion pounced on the hapless cat.

"Say your prayers!"

"I will. That's very very good! But before I die, I want a request."

"What?

"You could change into a big lion, and it's all so impressive. But I bet you could not change into something small, say a mouse?"

"You think I can't change into a mouse? That's easy!" she boasted. She changed back into an ogre, then turned into a mouse.

"See? Ain't I awesome!" Buttercup, as a mouse, boasted.

"Stupid too," Brick the cat said as he pounced on the mouse and ate her.

…

* * *

Boomer could only think about how he's gonna be dead. The king and the princess would find out he was not a duke, and they would have his head. He looked at the king besides him, who kept talking, and the Princess across him. Bubbles seemed to be friendly, nice, and pretty, and he was looking at her in a nice way that was somehow cute and scary at the same time. But what would happen when she finds out he was just a poor peasant? He would be strung up and put into a light that would trap him forever!

The carriage stopped. Boomer looked at a black haired peasant doing some work.

"Hey, peasant! To whom do these lands belong to?" asked King John.

"This belongs to my lord and master, Boomer, Duke of Destruction!"

Boomer could not believe his ears.

"This belongs to His Grace? Thank you!" said the king.

"Yes."

"Wow! Your land is pretty, your grace!" the Princess Bubbles cooed at the boy, who blushed at the attention.

Boomer blushed. What could he do but lie some more? "Uh, thanks, your highness."

"Let's go to your castle."

He was silent.

He was dead.

He had no castle.

Then again, he had no lands, and the peasants seemed to think he was the owner.

They reached the castle, and they were greeted by Brick.

"Your Majesty, welcome to Boomer's castle!"

"Wow! Look at that castle!" the king said in awe. "Bubbles, you are going to marry the Duke here. I hope you like it, Your Grace! You're gonna be the next king!"

"I'm g-g-g-g-g-onna marry Bubbles?" Boomer stammered on the carriage.

"Thank you Dad!" Bubbles said, hugging the boy, giving him a peck on the cheek, causing him to faint.

…

* * *

He opened his eyes. He was back in the library.

It was a dream.

That was a strange dream. Bubbles? Marry him? He got the dictionary and searched for the word _marry_. He laughed when he found out what it meant. That was ridiculous! They were enemies! She hated him! Why else would she steal his clothes and pretend to be him? And he _hated_ her.

He yawned when he saw light on the window. He knew it was time to go back to the shack. But he really did not want to go back and lie on the hard mattress. Still, Brick was waking up. He knew they had to leave before the library opened for the day.

As they flew back to their shack, Boomer realized something.

They were poor. Dirt poor. Just like the cat's master in _Puss In Boots._ But it's okay. They were more powerful and stronger than the richest guys ever, and he had faith.

Faith in his leader.

Faith that Brick would make them all rich one day, just like that cat in the story and in his dream.

* * *

_**15\. The Ghosts** _

_Six days later, August 20, 2004, Friday…_

The Rowdyruff boys had been visiting the library every evening. They enjoyed the place. Brick had been reading a wide variety of books, mostly informative, and his knowledge was vastly expanded. Butch fell in love with the huge catalogue of superhero comics stored, the oldest ones dated in the 1930s, while Boomer cannot have enough of reading fairy tales and children's stories.

They always only read for about three or four hours, then they would go to sleep at about 10 in the evening in the soft sofas. Probably sleeping in the soft chair was the favorite part of the adventure that Boomer and Butch most liked. It was way better than the hard mattresses that they had to put up with in Fuzzy's shack.

For Boomer, he was still wary about the Ghosts of Townsville Library. He still believed that they were there to protect the books from being stolen. But he figured that since the three had no intention of stealing the books, the ghosts left them alone.

Until they heard some footsteps.

The three boys froze, and Brick quietly ordered the three to put back to the shelves whatever they were reading. He closed the lights, and the three floated near the ceiling.

It was a security guard with a flashlight and a walkie-talkie. He walked around, and inspected the place where they had been.

"Joe, over. Nothing's here."

"Are you sure, Matt?" asked Joe on the walkie-talkie.

"I'm sure. But there's somebody here. I saw the lights being switched off," Matt the security guard replied.

"Yeah. Someone's been sneaking in and out of this library during the evening for the past week," Joe replied. "The lights had been on during the night without anybody coming in."

"There's no sign of breaking and entering. Could it be that the ghosts of Townsville library are back?" Matt asked.

"The ghosts? That means someone's trying to steal books in the library," Joe replied. "But why now? They haven't been seen for the last thirty years."

"Well, whatever it was that was using the light, it's gone now," Matt said, looking at the place in the library. The superstitious guard looked at the dark place, and shouted, "GHOSTS OF TOWNSVILLE LIBRARY! I'm here to guard the books! PLEASE DON'T HURT ME!"

With that, he went back to the entrance.

The boys floated down to the floor. "So the guards believe that we're ghosts," Brick remarked.

"See I told you there are ghosts here!" Boomer smugly reminded.

"This town is so dumb! They interrupted my reading of the _Incredible Hulk_!" Butch whined.

"So we have a problem. If we open the lights, people will get snoopy and will go and check. But if we don't open the lights, how can we read? We won't learn anything in the dark, you know," Brick remarked.

"Maybe we can scare them, like what the fake ghosts did in _Scooby Doo_?" Boomer suggested.

"What are you talking about?" Brick asked.

"Yeah. That sounded stupid," Butch remarked.

Boomer went to the shelf, and got a _Scooby Doo_ book. "Read this! It's about bad people dressing up as ghosts and scaring all those who might snoop."

Brick got the book, took his flashlight, read it, his eyes widening. He closed it. "We're the bad guys, right? And they think there are ghosts 'round here. Why not give them something to really be scared about?"

"What are you talking about?" Butch asked.

"Boom, get me that book on the ghosts of the library?" Brick ordered.

Boomer was only too happy to comply. Finally, his big brother believed him! And he finally had a good idea! He showed him the book. "So that's what the ghosts look like," said Brick. "They looked like white floating sheets. There are three of them. You think that ghosts won't mind us pretending to be them?"

"As long as we won't try and steal any books, I'm sure the ghosts will be okay with it!" Boomer replied.

"Wait here," said the red eyed leader. He left, and came back a minute later, carrying white sheets.

"What's that?" asked Boomer.

"I found this in the janitor's closet."

* * *

…

_The next day, Augusts 21, 2004, Saturday…_

The boys were back in the library, reading their favorite books. But their superhearing was on, listening, listening to any sounds that would indicate someone approaching.

Then they heard it. The sound of a key being put in the keyhole, the sound of the door being opened, and the sound of footsteps entering.

"Looks like the ghosts are back," they heard the same guard, Matt, say. "Lights are on, as expected."

Brick gave an evil smirk. "Time for some fun, boys!" He got his sheet, and put it over him. "Remember what we planned. Eyes should glow, and we should always float, got it? And change your voice. They mustn't know it's us or they'll all be crying for those Powderpuffs. And make it scary, okay?"

"Got it!" Boomer said as he put the sheet over him, and adjusted it so that the eyeholes were in the right place.

"It would be better if we could have violence," Butch whined.

"Yeah, but not this time," Brick said. "We'll be discovered if we try to be violent."

Butch just kept quiet as he adjusted the sheets.

"Ready, boys?"

Butch and Boomer nodded as the footsteps approached. Their eyes glowed, in preparation for their supposed use of the eyebeams, but this time, with no intention of discharging any energy.

Brick changed his voice to a high pitch as the guard, Matt, entered into view.

" _Whooooooo areeeeeee youuuuuuu? Whhhhhhhy doooooo youuuuu disturbbbbbb ussssss?"_

The guard looked, wide-eyed at the three "ghosts" and dropped his knees, shaking in fright.

"I am M-m-m-m-matt Stewawwwart. Are you the g-g-g-g-ghosts of Townsville Library?"

_"Yyyyyyyes wwwwwwwe areeeeeeee! Weeeeee areeeeee readdddddddding! Nnnnnnow beeeeeeeee ggggggggggone! Anddddddd doooooooo notttttttttt disturbbbbbbbbb ourrrrrrrrr reaaaaaaaading!"_

" _Leeeeeeeaveeeeee Nowwwwww!"_ Boomer commanded.

" _Boooooooooooo_!" Butch said as he approached the guard.

Matt ran screaming from the place. The boys chased him through the library, and harried him until he went to the front door, and left the place.

"That was fun," Boomer said, snickering.

"C'mon boys. Let's go back to reading," Brick commanded as he closed the front door, and locked it.

* * *

_**16\. Bubbles' Curiosity** _

_The next day, August 22, 2004, Sunday…_

_Breaking News!_

"This is Stanley Whitfield.

"The Ghosts of Townsville Library were actually seen! The guard at the library, Matt Stewart reportedly saw the three ghosts.

"So Mr Stewart, could you tell our viewers what you saw?"

"I saw them! Just like in the books! Three floating figures in white, with glowing eyes!"

"When and how did you see it?"

"Well, for about a week now, we observed that the lights on the library were on after it was closed. At first, we thought that we merely forgot to put it off. Then after a few nights of it being on, we thought there were some thieves, while some of us thought it was the Ghosts of Townsville Library. So I checked. Then I saw them. Three of them. Their eyes were glowing, just like in the legends. They were white, and floating! And they were reading! They said that they don't want to be interrupted!"

"Thank you, Mr Stewart," Stanley Whitfield said.

Bubbles Utonium felt happy as she watched the news. She was right! Blossom and Buttercup were the ones mistaken about the Ghosts of Townsville Library.

"See I told you so!" the blue eyed puff said to her two sisters sitting on either side of her as they watched the television. "There is such a thing as the Ghosts of Townsville Library!"

"I'm sure that fella just had a bad dream," Buttercup scoffed. "And people of this town are just gullible enough to believe it! Bubbles, that tale of Matt is baloney!"

"It does check out," Blossom said, holding her book on _Myths and Legends of Townsville_.

"What does that book say about it anyway?"

"Well Townsville Library is a Carnegie Library, meaning that it was established with funds from Andrew Carnegie."

"Who's Andrew Carnegie?" Bubbles asked.

"He's a wealthy man who sold steel. He gave away his money building thousands of libraries, and this one in Townsville is one of them. It was built in 1903."

"Enough with the history lesson. When did the ghosts start appearing?" Buttercup asked

"The legend started during the Great Depression, in the year 1931. Nobody knew why they started appearing. They just did. Three ghosts, white, without any form except that they looked like they were covered with white sheets, they floated, and their eyes glowed. It was said that they were there to protect the books from being stolen, and they sometimes read the books themselves during the night."

"See, I told you so!" Bubbles interrupted. She felt vindicated. Her belief that there was a ghost was really the correct view.

Unfortunately, her big sister just could not admit being wrong.

"I'm not yet finished. Others say it was just made up to discourage thieves from stealing the books. The library had some expensive and rare books during the Depression, and the police caught several thieves trying to do just that. The library employees all claimed that the ghosts scared the thieves into the arms of the police."

"Yeah, but what about the tale of the ghosts reading books at night? Why would they make that up?" Bubbles challenged.

"They say that they merely made it up to cover up the fact that some employees would remain in the library and read into the night. It would explain the open lights when the library was supposed to be closed at five p.m. and only open at 8:00 a.m."

"There, you see? Those ghosts really don't exist!" Buttercup asserted. "Just read Blossom's book."

"Well, I still think it was a ghost!" the blonde puff said, digging in. "What did Mr Stewart see then? He's not lying. I could see it!"

"No. He obviously believes the legend even before today," Blossom opined. "So he probably dreamt the whole thing up, and the dream was so real, he really believed he actually saw them. Or he would admit falling asleep on his job!"

"Or the ghosts are real!" the blue eyed puff insisted.

" _Occam's Razor_!" Blossom retorted. "That tells us that Mr Stewart was just _dreaming._ After all, he's the only who actually _saw_ the ghosts, right?"

Bubbles pouted. Her big sister was again being too logical to see the truth right before her eyes. An idea suddenly came to her.

"We should go to the library, and meet the ghosts," she suggested.

"What? We're not going there just to see a non-existent ghost!" Buttercup objected.

"The do exist! We should see them! Maybe we can make _friends_ with the ghosts?"

"For the last time, those ghosts don't exist," Blossom asserted. "Besides, it would be way past our bed time if we go to the library at the hours they were seen."

Before any of the girls could continue their argument, they heard the Professor call. It was time for dinner.

* * *

…

The next day, August 23, Monday…

Bubbles flew with Buttercup to accompany their big sister Blossom return her book. Before, they would not bother escorting Blossom, but after their leader's ambush, they decided not to take any chances.

The youngest puff had her own reason of going with Blossom. She was excited. She wanted to ask questions to Mr. Stewart, or Mr. Hendrix, or Mrs. Cartwright about the ghosts. Perhaps they could shed some light about it, something that Blossom's book could not have answered.

Bubbles just hoped that the ghosts won't be too disappointed with her sisters for not believing in them. But she was sure that the ghosts were nice. After all, they were there to protect the books from being stolen, and they just want to read in peace!

They arrived, and Blossom handed the book to Mrs. Cartwright, who stamped the book.

While that was happening, she looked around and saw Mr Stewart making his rounds as a guard.

"Hello Mr Stewart. I'm Bubbles!"

"I know you. You're the cutest and prettiest puff, who can be very tough too!"

"Thank you, though Buttercup is the toughest," Bubbles modestly replied. "Could I ask you a question, Mister?"

"Ask away!"

"Um, could you tell me about the ghost?"

"Well, the ghosts are white, they floated, their eyes glowed, and they're really scary looking," he said.

"Where did you see them?"

"On the elementary section, I think."

"Did they say anything else?"

"No, that was it!" he said. "I was too scared to ask anything else. After all, believing in them was one thing. To a _ctually see them_ is another ball game."

"Oh, thank you sir. I hope we can see the ghosts."

"Take it from me. You _do not_ want to see them again if you've seen them once," the guard advised as Blossom called her.

"Well, Blossom's calling, so I gotta go. Bye!" she said, waving, before leaving and joining both her sisters.

Blossom was holding a book in one hand and her library card in the other. Buttercup had her hands folded in front of her, a slight frown on her face.

"Girls! I talked with Mr. Stewart. He didn't fall asleep! He really saw the ghosts!" Bubbles whispered as Blossom gave the book and her card to Mrs Cartwright so she can stamp it and check it out.

* * *

…

"Of course he'll say he really saw them," Blossom said when they were flying home.

"Yeah, Bubbles! What did you expect? That he'll tell you that he lied to the world about seeing the ghosts, and that he really fell asleep?" Buttercup affirmed.

"Well, he's not lying! I talked to him, and he doesn't look like he's hiding something!" Bubbles insisted.

* * *

 _**17** _ **.** _**Powerpuff Intervention** _

…

Later that night…

_Breaking News._

"This is Stanley Whitfield. Another witness saw the Ghosts of Townsville Library. Last night, Peter Flores, the guard assigned during the night, saw them."

"It was scary! I was there! I was making my usual rounds! And there they were! Three, white, floating, with glowing eyes, reading books, and ordering me to leave and warning me never to disturb them while they were reading," he narrated frantically.

"See, I told you the ghosts were real!" Bubbles asserted. "The TV never lies!"

"Are you kidding me?" asked Buttercup, looking at Bubbles.

"Bubbles, Bubbles! You shouldn't believe everything you hear on TV!" Blossom lectured.

"Are you telling me that Mr Flores was lying?"

"Maybe. Or perhaps he was mistaken! What I'm telling you is that there are no ghosts!" Blossom insisted.

Bubbles could not believe the stubbornness of her sister. She was about to reply when the phone rang. The Professor ran from the kitchen to the living room and answered it.

"Hello. Oh hi Mr Clarence! No, no, I'm fine. Well, yeah, I've heard about it. Who hasn't? What, you want the girls to? Well, as long as they're home before it's past their bedtime. Okay, I'll ask them."

"Well Professor?" Blossom asked.

"Yeah Professor," Bubbles concurred. She could have used her superhearing, but the girls knew better than to intrude on a private call.

"Well, it was Mr Henry Clarence. He's the manager of the Library. You know he's worried about the reports of the Ghosts," the Professor began.

"The ghosts? See, there are ghosts!" Bubbles asserted, sticking out her tongue at both her sisters.

"As I was saying, the reports of the ghosts are scaring library patrons," the Professor continued. "So he asked me if you could investigate the ghosts."

"Yes! We'll go Professor!" Bubbles said, flying up to him and giving him a hug. "We would love to go and meet the ghosts."

"Bubbles! We haven't made a decision on that yet," Blossom chided. "Though I am curious about this… phenomena."

"Let's go! I can't wait to show our crybaby here that there are no such things as ghosts!" Buttercup declared.

"That is a good idea. We can settle once and for all who's right about the ghosts," Blossom agreed. "We'll go, Professor."

"Okay. But since you're going at night, here are some ground rules that you must follow."

The three girls listened intently.

"First. Bed time. You must be home before your usual bedtime, okay? I'm pretty sure that all the times the ghosts had been sighted had been before your bedtime, so if there are ghosts, you would find them before bedtime, okay?"

"Okay Professor," Blossom agreed.

"Second. You must stay in the library until it's time to go home. Do not go somewhere you shouldn't go, okay?"

"Yes Professor. We will just stay there," Bubbles said.

"Third. Do not stay there past your bed time. Now, since it's summer, I'm going to be lenient, and allow you stay until ten in the evening. But at ten p.m., I don't care if you're gonna save the world, unless you're trapped or tied up so you can't escape, you have to go home at ten, okay? Or you three would be grounded."

"Okay Professor, we'll do. What if we're in the middle kicking the butt of the ghost when the clock strikes ten?"

"NO EXCEPTIONS!" Professor Utonium snapped. "If you want, you'll start tomorrow evening at seven. You'll have three hours to try and solve this mystery."

"Yeah, the mystery of why the ghosts came back! I can't wait to talk to them!" Bubbles squealed.

"Or the mystery of what made those guards hallucinate or lie," Buttercup rejoined.

"Professor, could we read the books in the library while we're waiting for something to happen?" Blossom asked.

"I suppose you could. But you have to get permission from the librarian for that," the father stated.

"Thanks. Because if my hunch is right, it would be a very dull night, and we might as well read some books to pass the time," Blossom said. It was clear she was anticipating reading the library books, instead of actually solving the mystery.

"Ugh! This would be a very boring night!" Buttercup stated.

"No, it won't be! We're gonna meet the ghosts! Isn't that exciting?" Bubbles replied.

"And we'll get to read the books! That is something to look forward to!" Blossom agreed.

"And this is why our nights would become very boring!" Buttercup grumbled.

"Now Buttercup, I'm sure you could find some way to amuse yourself if there's nothing to it," the Professor said. "Maybe you can bring your blankie with you."

"Yeah, Blan—" Buttercup almost agreed, but then she looked at both her sisters, ready to snicker, "um, no, I won't bring it."

"Oh Buttercup, you should bring it! If we see the ghosts, you might not be strong enough to fight them if blankie's not there to give you strength!" Blossom teased.

"Shut up, Red!" Buttercup growled.

"Now don't tease Buttercup, Blossom," Professor Utonium admonished. "I'm glad that you're trying to help the library. But there's one thing I want you to always remember."

"What is it, Professor?" Bubbles asked.

"Always stay safe. You might be the most powerful human beings alive, but you never know what or who can have tricks that you may not be ready for," he said, kneeling so he would be eye level to his daughters. "I'm sure the ghost business would prove to be nothing to you, but just be careful, and don't do anything rash, okay?"

"Don't worry Professor. We'll be safe," Bubbles said. "The ghosts are friendly. They won't hurt anyone as long as you're not stealing books. They're just there to read."

"And we're strong and powerful! Nothing can hurt us!" Buttercup declared.

"And I'll make sure nothing goes wrong," Blossom assured. "You need not worry about us, Professor."

…

* * *

_**18\. Meeting the Ghosts** _

_The next day, August 24, 2004, Tuesday…_

Bubbles was excited. She longed to meet the ghosts ever since she heard reports of recent sightings. And now, she would have the chance. So she woke up early that morning, dressed in an extra clean blue dress, and took extra care so she looked prettier than usual. After all, it wasn't every day that she would meet a ghost.

Not only would meeting the ghosts be a great thing in itself, it would also prove her right to her sisters. Her sisters were too skeptical! How was a ghost any less probable or amazing than the Boogie Man, or Him, or even an imaginary monster turned real? Or for that matter, superpowered girls!

The day seemed very long as she literally counted the hours until they would go to the library.

"Seven hours till we meet the ghosts!" she would declare when it was noon.

"We know, we know," Buttercup snapped.

* * *

…

"Four hours more!" Bubbles giggled as the clock struck three p.m.

"Yes, Bubbles, four hours," Blossom sighed besides her.

* * *

…

"Hurry Professor!" she declared as six p.m. neared, trying to encourage her father to cook faster.

"Okay, okay," he laughed as he prepared dinner. "Calm down. The ghosts won't leave if you're a bit late!"

* * *

…

"Okay girls, it's time," the Professor said, looking at the clock. It was seven in the evening. "The sun would set in half an hour. So be careful. I'll be expecting you home at ten, okay?"

The girls nodded. They had already finished their dinner, and were ready to go.

"Bye Professor!" the girls said.

"Bye. See you later!" he replied.

* * *

…

Bubbles could not contain her excitement as they landed just outside the library. Waiting for them was the guard, Mr. Matt Stewart, and a man, about fifty, standing beside him.

"Girls! The Professor called and told me you'd be here," he said, shaking their hands. "I'm Henry Clarence. I'm the manager of the library. I requested your help."

"Hello Mr. Clarence," Blossom greeted. "Don't worry. We'll take care of it."

"So, how do we know when those ghosts have arrived?" Buttercup asked.

"You'll know. The lights will be switched on without any explanation at the elementary and kids section," Matt Stewart explained. "It happens every night, without fail, for the past week or so."

"Thanks. I have a favor to ask. Could we read the library books while we wait for the ghosts to arrive?" Blossom asked.

"Be my guest!" Mr Clarence replied.

Bubbles entered with her sisters. Her heart pounded in anticipation. She was so excited.

"So, what do we do now?" Buttercup asked.

"Well, we wait for something to happen. Then we look. In the meantime, let's read," Blossom began.

Bubbles looked at the place. It was dark and scary. But that was because the lights were off. She looked around for the switch. She was about to ask where it was when a fluorescent lamp in the middle of the place, above some bookshelves, suddenly came on.

"Look!" the blonde puff pointed.

Both her sisters looked at it.

"See, I told you!" the blonde puff asserted.

"Maybe it's a technical malfunction of the lamp," Blossom reasoned.

"Or it's a thief!" Buttercup said. "Let's pound 'em!"

Bubbles hurried to the source of the light.

But they saw nothing at the elementary section. Except a couple of books on the table, and on the sofa.

"Somebody's reading," Blossom said, inspecting the books. Once was titled _Geography for First Graders_ opened at an article about France, specifically, about Paris, another was a story book called _Dick Whittington and His Cat_ , and finally, there was a comic book. _The Flash!_

"Couldn't it be, that someone forgot to put it back?" asked the green puff.

"The staff always puts the books back on the shelves before it closes," said Blossom. "Somebody's been reading."

"See! The ghosts have been reading! The ghosts are the only explanation!" Bubbles asserted.

"Bubbles, there are no such things as ghosts! The staff probably forgot this time," Blossom asserted.

The lights suddenly went out.

"Did you?" Bubbles asked, suddenly gripping Blossom.

"No, I didn't," Blossom replied, clutching Bubbles too, a hint of hear in her voice.

Then suddenly, there was a low cry. It was sinister.

"What's that?" asked Buttercup. "That can't be ghosts!"

Then there was a loud cackle.

The green puff jumped and hugged both her sisters. "They're not real! They're not real!" she kept saying over and over. All her previous bravado was gone.

"Bbbbbbbbig Baaaaddddd Wwwwwwolffffff! Oooooooogre! Pppppprrrrrrincesssssss!" a low voice suddenly was heard. "Whaaaat arrrreee youuuuuuu ddddddddoing hhhhhhheeeere! Ddddddddisturbingggggggg ourrrrrrr readddddddding!"

Blossom clutched her sister tighter, her knees shaking by the voice. "What? Who's the big bad wolf? Ogre? Princess?" Blossom said out loud.

"Theeeeeeeee oneeeeeee wwwwwwwith theeeeeeee redddddddd bowwwwwww's theeeeeeeeee bigggggggg baaaaaaaaaad wwwwwwwwwolffffffffffff!" the voice continued.

"And who's the ogre?" asked Bubbles, still shaking, deathly scared of the strange voice.

"Thheeeeeeee onneeeee withhhhhhhh theeeeeee greeeeeeeen dresssssssss!"

Bubbles smiled despite her fear. "I'm the Princess?"

"Yyyyyyyyyyyyou arreeeeeee, stupiddddddddd!" the strange voice continued.

"Where are you?" Buttercup shouted. "And I'm no ogre!"

Another voice, different from the first one, began to talk. "Buttttterrrrrcupppppp! Weeeeee areeeee theeeeee ghosssssssts of Townsvilleeeeeee librarrrrrrrrrry!"

"Show yourself!" Buttercup shouted, though she was still deathly scared.

"Youuuuuuu areeeeeee notttttttttt worrrrrrthyyyyyy toooooooo seeeeeeee theeeeee ggggggghostssss of Townsvilleeeeeee librarrrrrrryyyyyy!" a third voice, strange too but distinct from the other two, was heard.

"There's three of them!" Blossom whispered as she looked around. The voices seemed everywhere, surrounding them.

"Could we take a look at you?" Bubbles asked. "We're not here to steal books and we don't want to disturb you're reading. And thank you for calling me Princess!"

"Pppppppprincesssssss! Leaveeeeeeeee nowwwwwwww!" the first voice began to say.

Then it happened.

Three figures in white, suddenly appeared in front of them, with no warning at all. They were floating, with glowing red eyes. It was the same vision that she saw in pictures, books, and documentaries about the ghost of Townsville Library. Yet it was way scarier to see it herself than to see it on books.

"BOO!" all three shouted with a very sinister voice.

The three girls screamed and scattered in fright.

* * *

Bubbles went at one end of the library, her heart pounding. This was not how she envisioned meeting with the ghosts. They were way scarier than what she imagined them to be. The glowing eyes! The sinister low voices! The floating white figures! It was like a horror show, but this was real!

But she shouldn't be afraid. She was not stealing books. She remembered the books opened. They were reading! They were disturbing them! She should apologize, and tell them that they were not stealing books. She hoped that they wouldn't be mad at them.

Bubbles was sure that the ghosts would listen to her. After all, they called her a Princess, and her sisters, an ogre, and a big bad wolf! She giggled as she imagined Blossom as a wolf, and Buttercup, an ogre. The ghosts must have been reading plenty of fairy tales! And they probably liked her best.

"Beeeeeeeee goneeeeeeeee!" the second ghost could be heard in that creepy voice. "Anddddddd neverrrrrr disturbbbbbbb ussssssss attttttt thisssssssssss hourrrrrrr againnnnnnnn!"

"BUBBLES! BUTTERCUP!" Bubbles could hear Blossom shout at the other end of the library. It was only at this point that Bubbles realized that she was at the back of the building, standing beside the wall. Blossom's voice came from the front.

"BLOSSOM! BUBBLES!" Buttercup's voice could be heard at another part of the library, at the corner, about as far away from her as it was to Blossom's voice.

"I'M HERE!" Bubbles shouted.

"Ppppppprincesss! Big bad wolffffffffff! Ogreeeeeeeee! Leaveeeeee nowwwwww orrrrrrr sufferrrrrrrr theeeeeeeeee penaltyyyyyyyyy!" the first ghost shouted.

Bubbles gulped, her knees shaking, but she shook it off. She can't be afraid. She's a Powerpuff Girl. And the ghosts were really not evil!

Yet she was scared.

"WE'RE NOT LEAVING!" Bubbles heard Buttercup shout.

Bubbles knew that Buttercup would go to the center, back to the elementary section. So she decided she must support her sister, no matter how scared she was.

She decided to walk. The shelves were tall, so it shielded her from view as she navigated the big library, going from section to section. _PHYSICS. HISTORY. MATHEMATICS. PHILOSOPHY._

"THERE YOU ARE!" Buttercup shouted. "I'M NOT AFRAID OF YOU, AND I'M—"

Buttercu's shout was suddenly cut off, and the youngest puff heard something fall to the floor.

She stopped. She looked at the shelves. The next one is the _Elementary_ section. Where the ghosts were. And where Buttercup must be.

"Buttercup!" she heard Blossom gasping behind the shelves. "What are—" her eldest sister was interrupted, and there was sound of something falling to the floor.

She gave a deep breath.

She walked.

She walked past the shelves.

And saw it.

Two ghosts, their eyes glowing, looked upon her sisters, both unconscious, on the ground.

She was frozen. What was happening? Did the ghosts hurt her sister? But how?

Courage began to fill her soul as she prepared to rescue her sisters. "Leave my sisters alone!" she said, her voice cracking with a mixture of fear and desperation.

But before she could do anything, she noticed that one ghost was missing.

Then she felt it.

Something collided with violence with the back of her head. She felt a sharp pain on the point of collision.

Then she blacked out before she could even open her mouth to scream.

…

* * *

_**Part 19: Revenge of the Ghosts** _

Boomer looked at the Princess Bubbles, slumped on the ground, unconscious. He looked at his electric bat, and smiled. The bat of his was a special weapon, his special power. He was the weakest in physical strength among the Rowdyruffs, but his bat made up for it. When he hit someone with it, it's force and impact was many times stronger than his punch and kick. And a well placed hit on the back of a powerpuff's head when they were defenseless and unprepared would knock them out. And the best thing was, it produced no sound when it made contact, nor does it emit light in the dark, unlike laser balls.

He looked at the big bad wolf and the ogre. He enjoyed hitting them both with the bat. He remembered every humiliation, every defeat, every insult, when he swung his bat and hit the unsuspecting puffs from behind. He remembered the time they kidnapped him, stripped him of his clothes, and imprisoned him.

He was naked.

In front of girls.

Who were his enemies.

He was embarrassed.

Traumatized.

He felt weak, and useless.

It made hitting the girls such a joy and such a cathartic experience. Buttercup the Ogre was the first to arrive in the elementary section. Brick and Butch were the distraction. So Buttercup, sorry, the Ogre, never even suspected him as he swung his bat. He never swung so hard in his life, and he was delighted as she dropped like a sack of potatoes.

Then Blossom the Big Bad Wolf was next. It was a pleasure knocking out the instigator of the whole thing.

But he reserved his special ire towards the Princess, the girl who actually wore his clothes, pretending to be him, embarrassing him in front of his brothers!

_How dare she!_

He was happiest when he connected his bat to her head, and was almost ecstatic as he watched her drop to the floor.

Sweet revenge indeed.

They looked at their victims silently for a minute or so, until it was broken by a soft laugh.

"Did you see their faces?" Butch snickered. "They were scared!"

"Yeah! Not only were they sissies, they were scaredy-cats too!" Boomer agreed.

"Don't laugh too loud! We don't want the idiots outside to hear us," Brick warned.

"And we had gotten away with it!" Boomer said with relish, "even if there were those meddling kids!"

Brick hit him in the head. "That's stupid!"

"Ow! Sorry," Boomer apologized.

"By the way, why did you call them the big bad wolf, the ogre, and the princess?"

"Read about it in the stories, and I felt like it," Boomer asserted. "Hey, could we now turn off the glowing eye thing? I really don't like doing it unless I'm gonna eyebeam someone."

"Sure. And cool names for those girls! Pinky the big bad wolf? That's fitting! Buttercup being an ogre is also cool. But why Princess?"

"Princesses are spoiled brats who always whined and are girly and are sissies!" Boomer answered. "Just like that character in Princess and the Pea. She's such a sissy and weak that she can feel a pea under twenty mattresses and can't even sleep!"

"That makes sense. It fits Bubbles perfectly," Brick said.

"Hey bro, what are we gonna do with 'em sissies?" asked Butch. "If you ask me, let's kill 'em and be done with it!"

"I'd like nothing better than to finish them off," Brick began, "but it's too easy. I'd like to beat them in battle, in a fair fight, using our brains, and outsmarting them as well as overpowering them."

"Why? Why not take the easy way out?" Butch demanded.

Brick looked at the dark green eyes of his brother. "Because it's easy. Too easy. If we stop now, where would we be? We're useless pieces of trash right now. I'd like to be something else. I'd like to make something out of us. Those girls would be our ticket to it. And they'd be useless to us dead if they died right now."

"I don't get it," Butch said, scratching his sheet covered head.

"I made us promise that we'll be smarter than them. How would we know when they're dead? We won't ever know, we won't ever know that we beat them. Sure, they're dead, and we would become smarter because the living are smarter than the dead," Brick began, "but where's the glory in that?"

"I still don't get it," Boomer replied, and Butch nodded at that.

"Just trust me on this one, bro," Brick said. "I'm making this as leader. It's my decision."

"You are the leader, and we did promise you, so yeah. I just hope you know what you're doing," Butch said, looking at the sleeping girls. "So now what? If we don't kill them right now, what do we do with them?"

"We use them as a warning to all who might come and be nosy," said Brick, picking up big bad wolf. "You pick up the other two."

Butch nodded as he picked up the ogre, and Boomer picked up the princess.

The door to the library opened, and the blue ruff heard footsteps entering.

"GIRLS!" the boys heard a voice of a middle aged man.

"Glow your eyes!" Brick whispered.

Boomer nodded, and did as told. He looked down into Bubbles, whom he held by the waist. Here she was, his mortal enemy! The girl he swore to destroy. Hadn't Brick forgotten the promise? It was their purpose! He would have agreed with Butch that their death was the best form of revenge they could have made.

But Brick was leader. He had a reason for sparing them. Brick was always right, and he won't let them down. If Brick says that keeping them alive until they can beat the girls with brains as well as brawn was best, then who was he, the Dumber than the Dumbest, to question him? At least he got the pleasure of hitting all three girls by himself and knocking them out.

Revenge was so sweet!

They flew to the front part of the library, where the man and the guard, the same guard that they had scared days ago, was.

"Whattttttt areeeeeee youuuuuu doingggggg hereeeeeeee?" Brick asked in his ghost voice.

Both men stopped.

"W-w-w-where are the Powerpuff Girls?" the middle aged man, about 50, asked.

The "ghosts" went in front of the two, and to their horror, deposited the Powerpuff Girls in front them.

"Theyyyyyyyyy wereeeeeeee tooooooooo nosyyyyyyyyyyyyy! Takeeeeee themmmmmmm andddddddd leaveeeeeee!" Butch commanded.

"Anyoneeeeeeee whooooooo dareeeeeeeee distrubbbbbbbb ussssssss woulddddddd beeeee likeeeeeee themmmmmm!" Boomer said. "Weeeeeeee onlyyyyyyy wanttttttttt toooooo readdddddddd!"

The two men hurriedly picked up the unconscious girls. "We won't disturb you! Promise! We'll let you read in peace!" the middle aged man, in fear, said.

"Yeah. We won't bother you, promise!" the guard added, before the two men literally ran from the library door, closing it as they did so.

"Let's go back to reading. We still have an hour before sleeping time," Brick said.

"Yeah!" Boomer cheered.

"Finally! I'm dying to know what happened to _The Flash_!" Butch concurred, flying toward the elementary section.

The three ruffs removed their sheets, and began reading once more.

…

* * *

_**20\. Powerpuff Analysis** _

_The next day, August 25, 2004, Wednesday…_

She opened her eyes and sat on her bed. She looked around, and felt bandages on her head. Then she remembered the events of the past night. She shivered. She had never been so shocked in her life!

"Are you okay, Bubbles?" Professor Utonium asked.

"I am," she said, and she looked around, and saw Blossom and Buttercup floating, both with bandages wrapped around their heads.

"All of you got nasty blows on the back of your head," said the Professor. "It's a good thing you didn't get any concussion, but it was enough to knock you out in one blow."

"Professor, the ghosts—" she began.

"I know. Your sisters already told me," he gently replied as he inspected her bandage.

"Oh, my aching head," Bubbles said, rubbing the part of her head which was hit. "Those ghosts really were strong, weren't they?"

"They are," Buttercup agreed. "I'm sorry Bubbles for doubting you earlier. You're right. There were ghosts."

"Powerful ghosts too," said Blossom, "if they can hit us with enough power to knock us out."

"Well, I need to go down now," Professor Utonium said. "Just rest, okay?"

Bubbles nodded. She felt bad. Not because of the pain. But because they had disturbed the ghosts.

"I guess they really didn't want to be disturbed while they're reading," said Bubbles.

"Well, those were certainly not figments of their imaginations. Whatever it was that hit us was real," Blossom affirmed.

"What do you mean whatever?" Buttercup asked. "Isn't it obvious? The ghosts of Townsville Library exists! And they're haunting the library at night!"

"Buttercup, you said before you didn't believe in the ghosts!" the pink puff argued.

"I know what I saw. Seeing is believing!" the green puff retorted.

"True. We saw what we saw. But they could also be intruders who dressed up like ghosts and tried to scare us," said Blossom, "because either they're reading, or they're doing something sinister. As nothing was stolen, and we saw those open books, I think they really are reading."

"I gotta go back," Bubbles cried.

"What? What for?" Buttercup asked.

"I need to apologize. We disturbed them! They must think that we're horrible people!"

"Well, come to think of it, have you read about reports of the ghosts knocking out people?" Blossom asked. "Ghosts were supposed to be harmless! They only scare, not hurt!"

"Well, we disturbed them!" Bubbles defended. "They have a reason. And they were only there to guard the books and to read! They're nice, anyway."

"They're nice?" Buttercup asked incredulously.

"They called me Princess, while they called you…" Bubbles began but then stopped when she remembered what they called the others.

"Go on, Bubbles, finish that thought," Blossom dared.

"Well, they called me a Princess! Not Princess Morebucks, but well, you know what they mean!"

"They called me the big bad wolf," Blossom finished.

Bubbles tried to suppress the urge, but then started giggling, then laughed outright at the memory. "Yeah, you're a big bad wolf! Awooo! And Buttercup, what did they call you?"

"I'm an ogre! At least I am way cooler than a wolf or a silly Princess! Ogres are strong and beat up those who are weak!" Buttercup snapped.

Bubbles laughed even louder! "He called you an ogre! An ogre!"

Buttercup stuck her tongue out. "An ogre is way better than a Princess! At least I'm not a stuck up snob who thinks she's better than everyone!"

"Now be nice, Buttercup," Blossom chided, "The ghosts don't know who Princess Morebucks is. I'm sure they're really complimenting her."

"Yeah. And I'm sure big bad wolf is also a compliment?" the green eyed puff retorted.

"Well, um, ah, a big bad wolf is a, um, well, nevermind," Blossom conceded. "But I don't think the ghosts were complimenting you when they called you an ogre!"

"Compliment or not, ogres are cool!"

"Righttt! So what do we do about the ghosts?" asked Blossom.

"We go back and apologize for being mean!" Bubbles said.

"We go back and kick their ghostly butts!" Buttercup answered.

"I don't think they're ghosts!" Blossom said.

"Hello! We saw them! They matched what we saw in the books!" Buttercup argued.

"Yeah! They float, and their eyes glowed, and they were reading at night!" Bubbles affirmed.

"I think they're just creeps donning sheets. As for the eyes and floating, well, I'm sure there's an explanation."

"So who do you think is pretending to be ghosts and could have their eyes glow like that?" the green puff asked.

"The Rowdyruff Boys?" the blonde ventured.

"I thought about it. After all, they were three. They could float. They could have their eyes glow. But there's one flaw. What were the ghosts doing? _Reading._ Now imagine the boys reading."

Bubbles thought about the time she spent time pretending to be Boomer. She remembered Brick spelling dumb d-u-m. It was so ridiculous that she can't help but laugh. "They _can't spell_. How can they even _read?"_

"Yeah, I thought so. The boys are stupid! Why would they go in the library to read at night? They can't even spell! Their heads would hurt just trying to read even the simplest books!" the redhead said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Yeah. It can't be those stupid Rowdyruffs," Buttercup agreed. "I mean they don't even go to school! They wouldn't bother!"

"And think about it. The boys are destructive hoodlums. They'd just fight us there and then. Why go through an elaborate hoax of pretending to be ghosts? I'm sure the boys are too dumb to even know about the Ghosts of Townsville Library to even try to pretend to be them," Blossom explained.

Bubbles agreed. "The place was too orderly. No way can the boys keep still!"

"So it isn't the Rowdyruff Boys!" puff leader declared.

"Yeah. They're really ghosts!" Bubbles argued.

"Yeah. Bubbles is right. They're ghosts! I saw it with my own eyes!"

"I don't think they're ghosts," the pink eyed leader insisted. "Tell you what. We'll go back, and use our x-ray vision to see what's under those sheets. If we see nothing, then I'll admit, they're really ghosts!"

"Yay! We'll go back! I'm going to say sorry for bothering them!" Bubbles proclaimed.

"You do that. Just remember, be careful. We don't want to be knocked out again. I'm pretty sure we're facing a brand new enemy we haven't seen before," Blossom cautioned.

"And I'm telling you, Red, they are real ghosts"! Buttercup retorted.

…

* * *

_**21\. A Small Setback** _

Later that night, at about seven p.m.…

Boomer and his brothers flew towards the library. They were a bit late, since the three celebrated their feat of knocking out the girls by stealing pizza, some fried chicken from the local KFC, and sodas from a vending machine. It was full of toasts, of laughter, of teasing, and of impromptu fights.

It was a glorious night. Hopefully, all those snoopy people would take the hint and leave them alone.

He looked forward to reading more stories. He began to read some of the longer tales, and right now, he was reduced to reading one story per night as the length only permitted such. Pretty soon, he would need two nights, or more, to read one tale.

But it would be worth it. He really enjoyed the children's stories, especially those with pictures. The only thing that he disliked was that the bad guys kept losing. And the so called good guys always won! He really disliked that, since he was a proud bad guy. So he simply pretended that the good guys were really bad, and the bad guys really good. That made it easier for him to enjoy the tales.

And his vocabulary had expanded so much. He learned so many new words during the past few days in the library, and the dictionary that Brick always carried around helped a lot. He enjoyed trying to use the new words in his sentences. So much so that sometimes, he was unaware that he was actually using new words or big words for that matter.

And now, he'll read more stories. He already picked up the book he wanted to read that night. A children's version of _Hercules_.

"Stop," Brick suddenly said a few hundred yards from the library.

Butch and Boomer stopped, and looked at their leader. Brick pointed to the entrance.

There were the two men whom they had scared the night before.

And the Powerpuff Girls. Blossom the Wolf, Buttercup the Ogre, and Princess Bubbles.

"Turn on your superhearing," Brick whispered, as the three settled on top of a nearby building, "and listen."

"Aren't you scared that the ghosts would hurt you?" asked the middle age man.

"No, Mr Clarence," the big bad wolf replied. "We tried to disturb their reading. And we were surprised."

"Yeah, we'll be ready this time," the ogre asserted. "Mr Clarence, Mr Stewart, we won't be caught unaware twice!"

"And we'll apologize for bugging them," the Princess asserted.

"Okay, be careful. I don't want to discover that you're knocked out," Mr Clarence said.

"Yeah. Don't anger the ghosts," said Mr Stewart, the guard.

"Don't worry, we'll be careful," the wolf assured. "C'mon girls, let's go!"

Mr Clarence opened the door, and the two girls entered.

"Let's see what they're up to," Brick said, flying to the side of the library. "Use your x-ray vision, and listen with your superhearing."

Both boys nodded, as they did as they were told. They landed and hid on the bushes besides the wall. Boomer turned on his x-ray vision, and saw the girls on the front part, sitting on couches as the wolf gave them instructions.

"This time, we'll see if the ghosts are real," the pink wolf instructed. "Remember what we talked about?"

"Yeah! We turn on our x-ray vision, and see what's behind those white things," the ogre recited mechanically in a bored tone. "Then we can kick their butts if they're just some losers in white sheets!"

"Yeah, but I'm sure we won't see anything," the Princess countered. "They really are ghosts!"

Brick suddenly flew high in the sky, and he signaled his brothers to do the same.

"What?" Butch asked when they were high enough.

"We're not going to the library tonight," the leader announced.

"What? I was gonna read about how Batman kicked Joker's butt! I'm already at issue #196!" his middle brother whined.

"And I want to read more on the history of the Roman Empire, but we can't if the girls are there," Brick said.

"So we scare them again," Boomer argued. "And knock them out again."

"Idiot! Do you think they'll fall for the same trick twice? Haven't you been listening! They would use their x-ray vision. And find out it was us. What will happen next?"

"They're gonna fight us!" Butch answered.

"Right. And who's gonna win?" Brick asked.

"We are! We're stronger!" the green ruff replied.

"No, you idiot! They are! We're still stupid idiots and we don't know anything," Brick stated. "We have no chance! And if we show up, then we probably can't go back to the library any time soon."

"Oh I knew it! We should've just killed them last night!" Butch whined.

"Let's go back after an hour, and see if they're still there," the redheaded leader said.

* * *

_One hour later…_

"They're still there," Boomer grumbled as he looked at the inside of the library building using his x-ray vision.

"Let's go back after an hour," Brick ordered.

* * *

_An hour later, at about nine p.m…._

"Couldn't they do something else?" Butch complained as the three looked at the library. The wolf was reading some books, the blonde Princess was flying around looking for something, and the ogre was asleep on the couch.

"Let's go back," said Brick, "in an hour."

* * *

_An hour later, at about ten p.m._

The boys were standing just outside the wall of the library, on the side.

They again used their x-ray vision, and disappointingly, the Powerpuff Girls were still inside. Using their superhearing, they listened.

"Where are the ghosts?" the wolf exclaimed as she looked at the clock.

"Apparently, they got scared of the Powerpuff Girls," the ogre said.

"After what they did to us last night? They cannot be scared of us," the Princess said. "Maybe we didn't try to disturb them, so they didn't try to show up?"

"There goes our plan," big bad wolf said, sighing. "Le't go. It's ten p.m. Time of our bedtime. We promised the Professor."

"Yeah. I want to get out of this boring place anyway," the ogre agreed.

"HELLO GHOSTS!" the Princess shouted. "WE'RE LEAVING! SORRY FOR DISTURBING YOUR READING LAST NIGHT!"

"Let's go," said the wolf, opening the door.

"So how was it?" Mr Clarence asked, who was waiting outside.

"Nothing happened," the pink wolf puff said. "Thanks for waiting for us."

With that, the Powerpuff Girls went home.

...

* * *

"Finally!" Butch said, relief evident in his voice as the three boys went to the terrace of the third floor. Brick, used his paperclip to open the locked door, and sneaked to their usual place.

Boomer was about to switch on the light so he could read when he was stopped by Brick.

"No. No reading tonight. Let's sleep. Now!"

"But we haven't read yet!" Butch complained.

"Yeah. I know. But we gotta have a good night's rest," Brick lectured. "Look at what happened last night I stayed up all night."

The two boys grumbled, but did as told, settling on the soft couches. Boomer lay down, and fell asleep.

* * *

_The next night, August 26, Thursday…_

"The girls are there," Boomer said to his two brothers.

"Let's go back at ten," Brick ordered, to the chagrin of his brothers.

* * *

So during the nights until September, the same dance would happen. The girls would spend the night until bedtime in the library, hoping to catch a glimpse of the ghost and either to beat them up in Buttercup's case, to talk to them and make them friends in Bubbles' case, or to reveal the imposters in Blossom's case.

But the ghosts would only appear after their bedtime, and the Professor would be adamant that they would be home by ten p.m.

The boys always wanted to resume their reading, but the girls' presence put a stop to that. Still, they preferred sleeping on the couches of the library than on the hard mattresses of their home. They would occasionally don the white sheets when a nosy guard got too close.

Regardless, after what the "ghosts" did to the Powerpuff Girls on August 24, all ordinary people would be scared to venture in the library after dark.

* * *

**End of Chapter II**

**Please, please, kindly leave a review if you liked this story. Thank you!**

 

* * *

**Thanks to you all for inspiring me to continue with this tale, my dear readers!**


	3. I - School Hijinks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Brick tries to educate himself and his brothers so they can beat the Powerpuff Girls. Chapter 3. Brick goes to school. Without being part of the school. Huh? After seeing the PPG go to school, he follows them to see what they were up to. And he decided that the best way to learn was to sneak and listen secretly to teacher. Except that his brothers can't keep out of trouble!

**An Education For Power**

* * *

Brick tries to educate himself and his brothers so they can beat the Powerpuff Girls. Chapter 3. Brick goes to school. Without being part of the school. Huh? After seeing the PPG go to school, he follows them to see what they were up to. And he decided that the best way to learn was to sneak and listen secretly to teacher. Except that his brothers can't keep out of trouble!

**Note** : Please leave a review if you like this story or chapter! Thanks!

* * *

**Book I**

**How to Learn?**

**Chapter III**

**School Hijinks**

* * *

_**22\. Breakfast Before School** _

* * *

_September 6, 2004, Monday…_

The leader of the Rowdyruff Boys was flying over Townsville in the early morning. They had just woken up in Townsville Library, and he and his brothers went to Fuzzy's shack to get some sleep. He decided to get some early breakfast, and perhaps get his brothers something to eat.

Brick was angry. He was mad. And it was all the fault of the Powerpuff Girls. They and their stupid meddling. Boomer was wrong. They didn't get away with it! They would have if it wasn't for those meddling kids! His plans for getting smarter than the girls were delayed. Now they would never be smarter than the girls!

He shuddered at the thought.

Perhaps Butch was right. He should've killed the girls when he had the chance. Instead, he let them go so he could defeat them in a fair fight using brains! But of course, that may have been a mistake. And why did he make such a mistake in the first place?

Because he was _stupid_! It was so fitting for someone who cannot, not so long ago, even spell the word "dumb"!

He needed to avoid the puffs in the meantime.

Wary of meeting the Powerpuff Girls while he was alone, he flew close to the ground. Unfortunately, a lot of the restaurants where he gets his stolen food were still closed at that early hour. So he had to look for something that was already open.

The only thing that he could spot was a cheap burger joint. There were already some customers at that early hour. Most of those customers were either on night shift on their way home, or those who had to work very early in the morning, and were on their way to work. A lot of them were construction workers. Some were doctors on their way home from the hospital. And some were joggers.

He casually landed on the ground, and entered. All eyes were on him, but they resumed their meals, not recognizing him as a Rowdyruff. Perhaps they were too used to seeing them float and fly that when they walk, they don't recognize him? Perhaps it was the shades that concealed his red eyes?

Whatever it was, he was amused as he walked and gave his order at the counter. Burger, fries, and a hot chocolate drink.

The waiter, a gangly tall man in his mid-twenties, with blonde hair and brown eyes, listed the order and yelled at the cook. Ten minutes later, his food and drink arrived.

The burger was just average, but the fries, he had to admit, was delicious. The hot chocolate was good too.

Satisfied, he walked out of the establishment when he heard the waiter shout, "hey kid, you forgot to pay!"

Brick smirked, turned around. "Yeah? How much?"

"Five ninety nine."

"Sorry, I forgot to bring money," he replied.

"That's not funny, kid. If you don't give me the money, I'll—"

He stopped when the six-year-old ruff removed his shades, revealing his unnatural eye color. He floated to the eye level of the waiter. "Or you'll do what?"

"Um, the meal's on the house!" he stuttered, recognizing the boy as a Rowdyruff.

"I'm glad you recognize your betters," he said in a low voice before turning around and leaving.

He really enjoyed doing that. He realized that the Rowdyruff Boys, by this time, had such a reputation that he need not use force to get his way. He only needed to ask, and the implied threat of what will happen if they didn't do as he said was all that it took.

And it had the added benefit of minimizing contact with the Powerpuff Girls. There was less chance of someone calling the annoying puffs with threats than with outright violence.

He regretted not ordering for his brothers, but knowing them, they're still asleep, and the food would be cold by the time they were ready to eat.

It was about 7:45 in the morning. He was casually walking, taking care not to draw too much attention to himself as he was not in the mood to fight or cause trouble. He was alone and he was _not_ ready to take on three puffs.

Speaking of puffs, he noticed something in the sky. Three streaks of pink, light green, and light blue. Correctly guessing it to be the Powerpuff Girls, he focused his vision, and saw that the three girls were wearing something other than their usual dresses. All three were wearing identical black skirts, but were wearing sweaters or jackets that were color coded—pink, green, and light blue, and he could see them wearing color coded ribbons on their necks. Each was carrying backpacks, also in their respective color.

He got curious. He had never seen them wear anything other than their usual dresses.

"Hey kid, aren't you supposed to be at school?" a middle aged man in a trench coat called.

"And you are?" asked the amused ruff.

"Truant officer Jack Wednesday," he said.

Brick debated whether or not he should teach that impertinent fellow a lesson. But he decided not to draw attention to himself. Besides, he wanted to see where the Powerpuff Girls were headed.

"Kids like you should be at school," he began.

He took that as his cue to leave. He floated. He judged that the girls were sufficiently far enough so they won't notice what he was about to do.

"You're flying! What the—"

"See ya later, pal," he said, giving a kick to his jaw that sent him to the ground and into unconsciousness. Brick then followed the Powerpuff Girls. He flew behind them, taking care not to be noticed. They seemed to be in a hurry.

They never turned around.

He saw them fly into a big building.

_Pokey Oakes Elementary._

He followed and landed on the roof, carefully keeping out of sight.

There were lots of kids wearing the same outfit—well, the girls at least. They all had the same black pleated skirt, that came to their knees or longer, with knee length black socks or black tights and black mary jane shoes, with the effect that no skin on their legs was seen. Their sweaters were differently colored, depending on their taste, but have the same design. Underneath the sweaters was a white blouse.

_Why are they wearing the same clothes? Only the colors of their sweaters and the thing tied around their necks are different._

The boys wore black pants, leather shoes, and jackets or coats with an identical design. But the jackets had different colors, but all in dark shades. Black, grey, brown, blue, red, green. All them were wearing some kind of cloth around their neck, but thicker than that of the girls, and it was longer too, reaching up to their waist.

* * *

_**23\. The Playground and the Classroom** _

All the kids were running around the grounds, playing with each other. Adults were there too, some coming with the students, others supervising the kids once they arrived. When the Powerpuff Girls arrived, they all stopped and looked at them land in the middle of the ground.

They gave a cheer.

"Powerpuffs!" they shouted, and they mobbed them. The girls shook their hands, and they agreed to play with some of them.

Brick could see Bubbles going to a group of girls and she played by jumping while two other girls held rope and swung it. Using his super hearing, he learned that it was called jump rope. He smirked. The blue puff was obviously holding back, as her jumps were painfully slow—for a powerpuff. It was fast compared to the kids, and it was obvious that she was putting more effort into slowing down than to actually jumping.

He looked at Pinky. She was with a group of children, and playing, based on what he heard again using his superhearing, "duck, duck, goose." They looked like they were having fun. Still, it was a stupid pastime.

Then there was Buttercup. Cowering before her was a boy with brown hair and a mischievous expression.

"Don't you ever try that again, Mitch Mitchelson!" he heard her threaten.

"Hey, I was just having fun! You aren't the one I'm hurting!" Mitch replied.

"I don't care! Don't bully anyone, especially Mike Believe!" she said, pointing to another boy, who was obviously the boy she referred to.

A vehicle arrived. It was a long white car, which he later found out was called a limousine. The driver opened the back door, and a curly red haired girl, the same age as the Powerpuff Girls, came out. He recognized her.

Princess Morebucks.

He recalled with a smile her attempts to join the Rowdyruff Boys. He must thank her sometime. She was responsible for their fun with the tank, the plane, and the boat. Playing with the plane was really really cool! Though he wished he had time to try out Butch's tank and Boomer's boat.

Except for pretending to be ghosts in the library, it was the most fun they had since they were brought back to life.

Still, she was a lame-o girl who thought she could join the Rowdyruff Boys! She's not even a boy! They ought to have just beaten her up!

All the kids looked at her as she stepped out of the limo. She opened her mouth. She was about to say something.

Then the bell rang, and all the kids walked, or sometimes, ran, inside the building. Princess was disappointed that her grand entrance was spoiled.

"Don't be late, Carmichael," she said to driver.

Brick watched as she caught up with the last of the kids. He himself rested a bit, wondering what else was there in this so-called school.

Stupid school. He was glad he wasn't attending one.

He looked through the building, using his x-ray vision to spot the girls. They went to one room. It was on a wing, the right wing, of the building, that happened to be two storeys. Luckily for him, the classroom was on the second floor. So he flew to the roof.

He turned on his x-ray vision and superhearing, and saw the three girls, but also other kids their age in a room. They were seated. In front of them was a desk. There was a dark green thing in the wall, and with white markings—letters—on it. There was a flag on the side of the green thing.

There was a middle-aged woman, with black hair and blue eyes.

"Hi Ms Keane!" Pinky greeted.

"Hello Ms. Keane!" the rest of the class followed in unison.

"Hello. I already know most of you. A lot of you were my students in kindergarten. For those who are new, my name is Ms Sandra Keane. I will be your first grade teacher for most of your subjects. I'm sure we will have a wonderful time learning. Let's start by telling us your name, and what you did this summer. Princess, you start."

The spoiled redhead stood up. "Hello. My name is Princess Morebucks. And I am the richest girl in all of Townsville. That makes me better than all of you. Yes, even better than the Powerpuff Girls. Because as they say, money makes the world go round, and I have tons of cash. As for what I did? I went on a cruise in the Caribbean. And I got to tour Europe."

"Thank you, Princess."

The kid behind her was next, and so it went on. Brick began to wonder why it was that all the kids, not to mention the teacher, had at least two names? Why was there a need for a second name? And the second usually was weird. Believe. Morbucks. Snyder. Why do they call themselves those kinds of names?

_Because they are idiots and they are stupid._

He waited for the Powerpuffs. He was curious if they too had at least two names.

"Hello. My name is Blossom Catherine Lynn Utonium."

_What? Pinky has four names? And why did she choose Utonium as a name? That sounded weird. Then again, she chose to be called Blossom. That was really stupid._

"I am a Powerpuff Girl. In fact, I am the leader. And we stayed in Townsville during the summer, and we repeatedly saved the day from monsters and villains."

"Thank you Blossom. Bubbles?"

"Thank you. I am Bubbles Joy Utonium. They call me the joy and the laughter of the Powerpuff Girls. During the summer, we always save the day, but Blossom already told you that. We also saw the Ghosts of Townsville Library!"

Brick raised his eyebrow at that. This was getting interesting.

"Oohhh!" the rest of the class said.

"Yeah, I heard you got clonked in the head and got put to sleep," Princess sneered.

"Shut up, Princess! We were surprised, that's all!" Buttercup snapped.

"Well, it's true, we were knocked out," Bubbles admitted, "but that's because they thought we were doing something bad. You see, the ghosts aren't really bad. They're there just to guard the books of the library, and they also wanted to just read, and well, we made them think we're disturbing them!"

"Thank you Bubbles," Ms Keane said, cutting off any response of Princess, or for that matter, Buttercup.

Buttercup stood up. "I'm Buttercup Therese Utonium. I'm the toughest fighter! I kicked some monster butt during the summer!"

After that, things became less interesting for the red haired ruff. He pondered what he should do, before he flew home. His brothers were still sleeping. So he laid down on his mattress, and was soon asleep.

* * *

_**24\. Being at School, Learning at School** _

_September 8, 2004, Wednesday…_

Brick opened his eyes, and looked around the shack. His brothers were still sleeping. The night before, they did their usual routine. They went to the library early, hoping that the girls would give up their quest to discover the ghosts now that they would be too busy with school. But it was not so. In fact, Blossom took advantage of the situation by doing her homework in the library. Bubbles went along with her sister's plan with equanimity, while Buttercup was disgruntled.

But until they stopped, the boys could do nothing without risk of being discovered and fighting a battle that, Brick feared, the boys might lose. So they just came in after the girls left, and that left no time for the boys but to sleep. They left early to avoid being discovered, and resumed their sleep in the shack.

It was disconcerting to the Rowdyruff leader. He was noticing that his sleep patterns were disturbed. Their activities were leaving them exhausted and sleepy during the afternoons, especially after lunch. They were thus needing more and more nap time during the day.

He got up, and wondered what he was going to do. He remembered the Powerpuff Girls were at school last Monday. He wondered if they were at school during that day.

He went out and flew towards the elementary school. It was about 9:30 in the morning, and he landed on the roof of the small wing that housed the classroom where he had last seen the Powerpuff Girls.

He again turned on both this x-ray vision and his superhearing, and his attention turned to the teacher, Ms Keane. She was speaking in front of the students. She was holding a white thing he later learned was called a chalk, occasionally writing something.

She was _teaching_.

And he was hooked. He was _entranced_. Her voice was pleasant to listen to, and the way she spoke was such that it compelled the listener to pay attention. And he was _learning_. The current subject was English, and Ms Keane was teaching grammar.

He finally found a way to learn without the library.

And without going to school.

Well, technically, he was at school, but he was not going to school, if that made sense. He was not like those poor saps trapped inside the classroom with no freedom and no options.

Unlike them, Brick was smart. He could come and go as he pleased. He would learn. He would not be bound by the rules of school.

And he finally understood why so many chose to attend. It's because it's their way of learning. It's their way of becoming smart. And he understood why those idiots had to be compelled to attend. If they were not, they would not bother, and they would remain dumb for the rest of their lives. So those students were still stupid. He was not stupid. He would come here. _Willingly_. But not be bound by their stupid rules.

And he finally found, he believed, the secret to why the Powerpuff Girls were so much smarter than them! They had been attending school for at least a year. While the boys were not.

Granted, school was dumb, but… School was _not_ dumb.

He listened as Ms Keane expounded on the rules of grammar. He learned a lot. Some of those he already knew from his reading, but a lot were new, or those he already knew got explained and he understood better what he had read from books.

It was a wonderful experience.

The bell rang.

And the teacher switched subjects. She was now teaching history.

Ms Keane began asking questions.

"Okay class. Who was the first President of the United States?"

_That's easy. George Washington._

He looked at the class. Only one raised her hand.

"Yes Blossom?"

"The first president was George Washington!"

_Yes! I got it! I got it before Blossom._

"Thank you. Now, what was his address called when he decided not to run for a third term?"

_That's easy. It's called the Goodbye Address._

Again, Pinky was the only one who raised her hand.

"Yes Blossom?"

"It's his Farewell Address."

_Wrong, Pinky._

"Correct!"

_What_? _That can't be! Okay, we're tied._

"Third question. What was the event in France that led to war in Europe?"

_That's the French Rebellion._

Again, it was Blossom who raised her hand.

"Yes, Blossom?" Ms Keane called with a tone of exasperation.

"It's the French Revolution."

_Wrong!_

"That's right!"

_Oh yeah. It's revolution, not rebellion._

_Blossom: 2_

_Brick: 1_

"Okay. What was event during the time of Thomas Jefferson that made the United States bigger?"

_The Louisiana Purchase._

Again, only Blossom raised her hand.

_Seriously, does nobody else in this class ever know anything?_

As if the teacher was echoing Brick's thoughts, she said, "Is there anybody else other than Blossom that want to try?"

Mitch Mitchelson raised his hand.

"Yes Mitch?"

"It's the Civil War."

"No, Mitch, sit down. Yes, Princess Morebucks?"

"That's when my ancestor, Peter Morbucks, moved from Boston to Maine!"

"I'm sure that's important to your family, Princess, but that did not increase the size of the country. Anything else?"

"Well, that's when Benjamin Franklin discovered lightning!"

"One, Ben Franklin did not discover lightning. Everybody knew that lightning existed before him. What he proved was the connection between lightning and electricity. Second, that happened five decades before. Third, that didn't enlarge the size of the U.S."

Princess sat down again.

"Seriously, does anyone of you even read your textbooks? I told you to read chapter 4."

She was met with silence.

"Anybody read the chapter?"

Only Blossom raised her hand.

"Okay, Blossom. What was it?"

"The Florida Purchase."

"It was the Louisiana Purchase," Ms Keane corrected.

_Yeah! I got you, Pinky. We're tied again!_

"Oh yes. I guess I got it mixed with what happened the during the next decade."

Then Ms Keane went on a lecture on the topic. He was entranced. She was very good at teaching. She knew how to handle kids. Both know-it-alls like Pinky, and those who knew nothing, like the one called Elmer Sglue, were handled expertly, and she knew how to keep their attention and to make them learn. Even Princess bowed to her authority. She would be perfect for teaching Boomer and Butch.

Ms Keane was perfect. _Perfect_!

But that would entail going to school. He shook his head. Getting Ms Keane to teach them was not worth being imprisoned in school all day. They wouldn't want to trade their freedom. And they were evil.

Evil kids don't go to school.

Yet Princess was evil. And she goes to school.

Princess was not really evil then, only a spoiled brat with pretensions to greatness.

* * *

_**25\. Fun With Math** _

The bell rang, and again, the teacher stayed, and just switched to a new subject.

Mathematics.

She began writing on the green part of the wall.

_Numbers with symbols._

"Class, have you done your homework?"

Collective groans could be heard from the students.

"Yes Ms Keane!" Pinky said, showing her homework. The other kids also showed theirs, although with less confidence than the Powerpuff Leader.

"Okay, who would like to go in front, and write the solution in the blackboard?"

_So it's called a blackboard? Why not call it a greenboard? It's green, right?_

984 + 653

452 + 652

239-112

426-165

1,125 + 653

He looked at the problems. Then he realized he had no idea how to solve any of them. He had not read one math book in the library. He only knew simple arithmetic. Like 1+1=2. Or even 9+9=18. But Him never thought them how to add numbers with two digits.

Pinky quickly solved the first problem. And she explained how she did it.

"To solve 984 plus 653, you must first add the last digit. So 3 plus 4 equals 7. Then add the next digits. 8 plus 5 equals 13. But it's two digits! What you do is to put the last digit, 3, next to seven, then carry the tens digits, above the next digit, so put it above 9. So 9 + 6 equals 15. Add 1, the number carried, to 15, and it would equal 16. So put 16, and you get an answer of 1,637."

_That's so simple! Pinky really knows math. I really need to catch up._

"Very good, Blossom!" Ms Keane said.

He mentally tried to do the next problem.

_So let's see. 452 + 652. Two plus two equal four. Then 5 plus 5 equals 10. Wait. What if the digit is zero? Okay, let's put it besides 4, and carry 1 like Pinky said, above the next digit to the left. So four plus six is ten. Add one. Eleven. So the answer is 1,104._

Blossom got the same answer. And Ms Keane confirmed it.

_Yes! I am so great! I am so smart! I learn very fast!_

He then tried to answer the next problem, but he got lost since he had no idea how to deduct three digit numbers. And this time, he wasn't able to get the solution from just watching Pinky solve it. He needed a paper or something to write in to get it right. But he had nothing.

After the problem solving, Ms Keane again took over, teaching. Brick listened intently, determined to be better than Blossom. He made a promise, after all, in front of his brothers.

After the lecture, she said, "Class, here's your homework."

Collective groans from the students.

She began writing problems on the board.

52+63. 1+56. 965+652. 475-432. 110-99. 125+752. 365+452. 412-32. 445+621. 725-652.

The students started copying it on their notebooks. Brick himself looked around. He needed to try to solve those numbers! But where would he get a paper and pencil?

He decided he'll just steal a notebook from the dumb students. Maybe even from Pinky herself.

The bell rang.

And the students began getting out of the classrooms. They walked or ran into the grounds outside. It was a break or something.

"RECESS!" Buttercup shouted, giving it a name.

He again looked at the classroom, and it was empty. Except for Ms Keane. He watched, hoping that she would leave and he would get his chance.

Then suddenly, there was a shadow. He turned and looked at its source.

He paled.

It was Blossom. She was in the air.

He stood there, frozen.

But she had her back turned on him. In fact, she was looking for something else, away from the roof.

_Please don't turn around. Please don't turn around. Please don't turn around._

"I can't see it!" Blossom said, looking at something in the distance.

"I'm sure it's there !" Mike Believe shouted from the ground. "You can't miss it!"

"I can't see any green house that looks strange," said Blossom. "All of them look pretty normal to me."

Buttercup flew and floated beside her sister.

"I can't see it too. Are you sure it isn't your imagination, Mike?"

She was looking down, her back still to the roof, to his relief.

"I'm sure," Mike Believe answered.

"I can't see anything," Buttercup said. "Are you sure it's in that direction?"

"I'm sure!"

_Please don't turn around._

Brick would be creamed if he got into a confrontation with the three puffs. He was thankful that Buttercup and Blossom's attention was fixed to whatever it was they were looking at.

Still, his heart nearly stopped as he kept looking, silently, at the back of the two girls. Buttercup turned.

He nearly had a heart attack.

But only slightly, and said to Blossom, "I can't see anything."

"Me too. No green strange house in that direction."

Then to his immense relief, the two floated down.

Brick immediately flew to the back of the building, where there was no one. He breathed heavily as he noticed that he was covered with sweat. It was scary.

Scary.

He used his super speed and stood right outside the puff's classroom. He used his x-ray vision to see if there was anyone inside. Finding it empty, went in and he looked at the blackboard. The math problems were still there. He looked around and saw notebooks still open on the table. Apparently, they were too eager to go out that they didn't bother to put away their things.

He floated to Blossom's table. He was tempted to steal her open notebook. But he decided not to, since that might alert the others of his presence. He looked at her handwriting. It was so neat and orderly. Not like his which was ugly and hardly legible. And her notes were orderly and organized.

He tore the next empty page of the notebook.

He took the pencil, and copied the problems on the board. He decided that he might need more paper, so he tore four more pages. He then got her pencil. He would need it too if he wanted to solve problems.

He was about to leave, but then realized that tearing pages from her notebook and stealing pencils would also make her suspicious.

He had an idea. He saw a red pen on the teacher's desk. He took it, and wrote on the next empty page of Pinky's notebook.

_I AM THE GHOST OF TOWNSVILLE LIBRARY. FEAR ME. DO NOT COME BACK! BIG BAD WOLF, DO NOT RETURN! TELL THE OGRE AND PRINCESS TOO THAT THEY SHOULD NOT COME BACK!_

The words were printed, and he tried to conceal his handwriting as much as possible.

He left the classroom, and went back to the roof. He smirked as soon as he heard the bell ring.

…

* * *

_**26\. Ghosts in School** _

The scream was music to his ears.

Looking on with his x-ray vision, he saw the other kids go to Blossom's desk.

"Oh my God! The ghosts! They're here!" Bubbles shrieked as she stared at the torn notebook. "They must be still angry!"

"But that's impossible!" Blossom said as the rest of the kids crowded around her.

"Now, I'm sure it's just someone who played a prank," Ms Keane said, looking at the notebook. "Okay class, who wrote that?"

Buttercup shook her head. "That's no trick. The Big Bad Wolf. Ogre. Princess. That's what the ghosts called us."

"And we told no one else," Bubbles said.

"Wait? Why am I mentioned by the ghost?" asked Princess Morbucks, fear evident in her voice.

"She's not talking about you, idiot! The ghost meant Bubbles!"

"What? Somebody called Bubblehead here Princess?"

"Yes. And it's not a name. It's a compliment," Blossom asserted. "But why would a ghost come here, tear a page out of my notebook, and steal my pencil?"

"So you do believe there's really a ghost! It wasn't just someone in a white sheet!" Bubbles asserted.

"Well, I still think it's not a real ghost. It's just that they're here, and they're trying to scare us away from the library," Blossom asserted.

"So are there ghosts in school?" Mike Believe asked, clearly frightened.

"Don't worry. The ghosts are really nice, as long as you don't try to steal books in the library, or try to disturb their reading," Bubbles comforted.

"But what are they doing here?" Mitch asked.

"Apparently, they didn't like us staying there at night, trying to see them again," Bubbles answered after a bit of thought.

"Well, I'm not backing down! We'll go back to that library tonight and kick their butt!" Buttercup declared. "Those ghosts will never know what hit them!"

"They're here," Blossom said, her eyes darting from side to side.

Brick chuckled. However, he stayed too long in school. His brothers might be worried. He took one last look at the classroom, and flew off.

…

* * *

He smiled as he approached the forest and their shack. He loved the place. Not the shack—but the surrounding area. It could supply all their needs if they chose not to commit crime—after all, food could be taken from all the animals living in the place, not to mention fish from the lake and birds that flew over them. But they were evil, so they would not stop doing crime.

Speaking of food, he smelled the aroma of cooked meat. Landing in front of their home, he saw a dead boar skewered with a wooden stake, and hung over a fire. He could see boar guts in a corner. He'd have to incinerate it. His youngest brother was turning the pig over the fire. It was nearly cooked, he could tell by the smoke.

"Where have you been?" Boomer asked.

"Yeah. Where'd you disappear to?" Butch added.

"Places," Brick said. "I went to spy on the Powerpuff Girls."

"So you found out anything?" the green ruff asked as he added another log to the fire.

"They still, well, Bubbles and Buttercup at least, believe that the ghosts really exists. Pinky thinks that someone's just pretending to be ghosts, but she's got no proof of that," Brick remarked.

"So what did they do?" asked Boomer, curious about his brother's whereabouts. "Did you go to their home?"

"No. I went to their school."

"You mean those sissies go to school? But why? They're powerful enough that no one can force them to attend those horrible things!" Boomer asked.

"Yeah. What's up with that? I understand the other kids. They can be forced by the adults, but the Powerpuff Girls? They really are sissies if that's true."

"It's true. And let me tell you the reason why they are so smart."

"What?" Butch asked as he inspected the boar.

"They went to school."

Both his brothers looked at him as if he was crazy. "What are you talking about?" Butch demanded.

"Calm down, bro. I went there. I listened in. Their teacher is very good. I learned so much just listening. That's why they're there."

"Are you going to say that we should go to school?" Boomer asked.

"Look, we promised to do what you say, right or wrong, but if you order us to go to school…"

Butch left the statement hanging.

"Look, I am not saying that we should be enrolled in school. I am just telling you why the girls have so much smarts and why they are very clever and why they keep beating us in fights even if we're stronger. It's because they attend school."

"So what are we going to do about it? Without going to school?" asked a skeptical middle brother.

"I'm glad you asked." Brick began as Butch prepared three knives and gave two of them to his brothers and Boomer got some plates from the inside of the shack.

Brick told them what he was doing as they ate. It was supposed to be breakfast, but it was already near the middle of the day, about eleven in the morning, that they just called it lunch.

"So that's school," Boomer said as he bit on his pork. "Sounds boring."

"Yeah. I can't imagine sitting inside a room for an entire day," Butch said before he took his own bite. "I need _violence_."

"So what are you gonna do with the paper and the pencil?" Boomer asked before he bit his food again.

"Well, I'm gonna try and solve the math problem Ms Keane gave," Brick said after he swallowed his meat.

"How are ya gonna do it?" asked Butch as he finished off his food.

"I dunno. I'll think about it later. But for now, let's talk about what we're gonna do."

"Oh no! Don't tell me we're gonna go to school!" the blue-eyed ruff asked in horror, panic creeping into his voice.

"No, but I might if you keep annoying me," the red ruff snapped before taking another bite off his meat.

…

* * *

_**27\. Brotherly Lessons** _

"This is boring!" Boomer complained as he sat on the floor on their shack.

"Yeah. Why do we have to do this again?" Butch asked besides his brother.

Brick, standing in front of them, stopped his lecture as he looked at the two of them.

_Typical of them to complain._

Maybe he should not have tried teaching them some of his knowledge. After all, they were not interested in the knowledge that he was gaining day by day. Yet he promised that they would be smarter than the Powerpuff Girls. With the girls in school all the time, they would be left in the dust if Brick did not do something.

And he would do it.

Even if he had to drag his brothers kicking and screaming. He can't just have all the useful knowledge to himself.

"Look, I know you enjoyed learning," the red ruff began, "after all, you enjoyed reading in the library!"

Butch frowned. "Comic books! I love comic books and reading about supers and villains. Not this thing! Who needs to know about what happened in the last century?"

Boomer made a face. "Yeah. I like stories! Tell us stories that happened a long time ago! About dragons! And kings! And dwarfs! And sorcerers! And ghosts!"

"Look, you won't get anywhere reading only those drivel. Now, listen, and please, try to learn. Where were we? Oh yeah. Thomas Jefferson, in 1803, bought Louisiana from France…"

And he droned on. Both his brothers pretended to listen to their big brother, the only thing keeping them from bolting was Brick making an explicit order that his brothers dare not disobey.

The leader, however, soon realized that try as he might, he can't get his brothers to listen and learn from him. Oh how he wished he was like Ms Keane in teaching, making even someone not interested to listen and learn.

He finally stopped.

Boomer raised his eyebrow. "Is it over?"

Brick sighed, putting his palm over his face. "Yes, it is."

"Yeah!" Butch shouted. "Let's have some fun!"

_At this rate, we'll never catch up with those puffs._ He had to find a way to make his brothers learn and surpass their counterparts, or else they would be doomed. And he would be doomed along with them.

…

* * *

"Why are we going here again? We're too early! Those girls are still there!"

It was seven in the evening. And they were standing just outside the walls of the library, hidden by the bushes that surrounded the place.

Brick turned and smirked at his brother. "Because, Butch, I want to see what they're going to do after the stunt I pulled! Now listen, and turn on your x-ray vision."

"About the ghosts? I hope the ghosts don't get mad. I mean, we made the girls think the ghosts went outside the lib."

"For the last time, Boom, the ghosts don't exist! But these idiots think they do!" Brick explained, but he knew that trying to reason out with Boomer was like talking to a brick wall.

He looked inside, and saw the three girls inside, at the front, and listened in.

"Okay. Since those ghosts dared to show up at school, I'm sure they'll show their faces tonight," Buttercup declared. "And when they do, I'm gonna beat them up! I'm gonna teach them a lesson about respecting the personal things of others!"

Bubbles looked at her disapprovingly. "Don't be like that, Buttercup. They just gave us a fair warning. They did those things to get our attention. It's not nice, and they shouldn't have done it, but I'm sure they didn't know it was wrong."

_Good. Let them think that the ghosts are real! I got them spooked!_

"Look, I'm not going to argue with you about this, but for the last time, the ghosts are no ghosts at all! They're just somebody in white sheets!" Blossom argued.

_Don't be so smart, Pinky! Believe in the Ghosts!_

"How do you explain what's been happening? Surely, if it's been someone in a sheet, they would have been caught already," Buttercup argued. "Besides, the ghosts float! They have glowing eyes! The only ones who fit that description are the Rowdyruffs! But as you said, Red, the ghosts read! They read books! And those boys are stupid and don't read, so it isn't them!"

Brick hated the Powerpuffs for looking down on the Rowdyruffs.

_That's right. Think of us as stupid, you jerks! Think of us as knowing nothing. You will rue the day you insulted us and mocked our brains! Mark my words, Pinky, my mark works. Buttercup, mark my words, Bubbles too!_

_And please think of us as idiots. Then you won't find out it was us all along!_

"Yeah. There's no obvious candidate. It must be a new villain in town," Blossom argued. "Someone we haven't met yet. But I'm sure it's not the actual ghosts. The ghosts are nice. All the books say that. So why hit us in the head? Besides, everyone knows that ghosts only scare, not actually hurt."

Brick signaled for his brothers that they should leave.

…

* * *

"The nerve of those lame-o girls!" Butch argued.

"To be fair, we didn't start reading books until a few weeks ago," Brick said. "And let them think that. They won't find out it's us with that attitude."

* * *

…

They returned at about 10 p.m.

"They're still here," Boomer whispered as they turned on their x-ray vision and settled on the bushes. "I hope the leave soon. I want to sleep already."

Brick merely nodded as he concentrated on the scene inside.

"HEY GHOST! SHOW YOURSELVES!" Buttercup shouted, frustration obviously evident in her voice.

"YEAH! WE WANT TO APOLOGIZE! WE WANT TO BE FRIENDS!" Bubbles shouted besides her.

Blossom, who was hunched over a book, just shook her head as she closed what she was reading and returned it to its proper place.

"It's no use. Those ghosts won't come back until we're gone. We need to go home," the pink puff said as she went beside her sisters.

"No way! Not after the stunt they pulled in class!" Buttercup retorted. "Nobody tears a page out of your notebook and gets away with it!"

"Leave it be," Pinky retorted. "Look at the time. The Professor will get mad if we stay here past our bed time."

"Besides," Bubbles said, yawning, "it's school night."

"Okay," Buttercup said, "let's go."

The boys watched as the three girls left via the front door. They saw three streaks of light in the air as the girls flew home.

"I thought they'd never leave!" Boomer said as they flew towards the third floor balcony.

"Those lame-o's are really irritating!" Brick agreed as he used his pin to unlock the balcony door.

The other two nodded as they flew in and Brick again locked the door from inside. They went to the soft couches and immediately curled up. They were asleep less than five minutes after they lay down.

Except Brick. He remained awake, fought his sleepiness and his urge to go back to the couch, and flew to the kids section. He scanned the titles and found what he was looking for.

_Mathematics for First Graders_.

It was the exact same book that the students in Ms Keane's class used. And he began reading. He went to table, got the problems he copied from the classroom, and tried to solve them on the paper he tore from Blossom's notebook. He finished in about an hour. He was sure of his answers. Hopefully, he got it all right.

He wanted to see if he would get higher than Pinky.

He wanted to beat her in front of Ms Keane.

* * *

_**28\. Brothers Going to School** _

…

_The next day, September 9, 2004, Thursday…_

Brick stood in the roof, hidden, as the bell rang and signaled to the teacher that it was time for Mathematics. He took the folded pieces of paper to see if he got the answers right, and to see if Blossom did too. More importantly, he would see who was better between the two leaders.

He was confident.

"Class, please pass your math homework," the blue eyed teacher instructed, and Brick eyed Blossom's paper and quickly noted her answers.

They had the same answers for six of ten items.

They were different in four numbers. He quickly wrote Blossom's answers besides his, and circled the Pink Puff's answers.

Ms Keane then began writing the ten problems on the board.

"Mitch Mitchelson, solve the first problem on the board," Ms Keane commanded.

Mitch groaned a bit but did as ordered.

She called nine other students to the board. Each of the three powerpuff girls were called too.

Each of the students called explained how they answered the problems.

Then Ms Keane began to correct them. Most of them got it right. Even Pinky. Three students got wrong answers on the board, including Bubbles. Buttercup got hers right. Princess was wrong. Mitch and Mike Believe got their answers right. Harry Pitt was the last one who got a wrong solution.

Brick compared his answers with that of Blossom. He got two answers wrong. Blossom got one wrong. So he got 8 out of ten. Blossom got 9.

He was still _behind_ Blossom! Even after reading that Math book! He was still behind!

_How could I surpass her? She was ahead of me! I will be better than you, just you wait, and I will wipe out that smug look off your face!_

Of course how could he do it if refuses to enroll in school was a question that bugged him. Would he do the logical thing and become a regular student?

Never!

There were many ways of learning other than being a prisoner in this building. Yet he had to admit, being in school was a great advantage to the Powerpuffs!

He needed a way to offset it!

He could go on this course. He was sure that given enough time visiting the school clandestinely like this, he would surpass Blossom. After all, he was, as a ruff, better than her, right? He learned so fast! It was only because of the circumstance of their birth and Him's abysmal upbringing that the puffs managed to be better than the ruffs.

So his future was set. But what of his brothers? He knew that he was no teacher. The day before had taught him that. But he was determined that they would be suitably educated and knowledgeable too! They needed to be smarter than their counterparts! Boomer needed to be smarter than Bubbles. Butch's destiny was to leave Buttercup in the dust.

But how?

They cannot read anymore in the library because the girls had made a habit of camping in the library after school in order to catch the "ghosts". That "brilliant" plan of his to hit the girls while ghosts sure backfired on the ruffs!

He focused on the teacher and the students as he tried to put his mind back to what was being taught. If only his brothers were with him, then they could learn too. If only…

His eyes brightened. He had the answer!

* * *

…

_The next day, September 10, 2004, Friday…_

"What?" Butch asked, his mouth agape, when he heard his brother's decision. It was a few minutes until eight in the morning.

"You heard me," Brick said, "I think I made myself perfectly clear."

"I heard you, but I still can't believe it!" the green eyed ruff replied. "You said we won't attend school!"

"And we won't! We're going to the school building, and learn by listening. We're not actually going to enroll in that blasted thing," said his leader.

Butch scowled. "It' the same goose."

The redhead insisted. "It isn't. We'll just be hanging out! We can leave whenever we decide to! Unlike those who attend class. They can only leave when the bell rings, and when the teacher decides they could leave. We? We'll just leave when we want, and skip learning what we don't need!"

"So how is it?"

Both his older brothers look at the blond boy.

"Boom, stop being stupid and speak clearly."

"School. How is it? Is it fun?"

"Fun? If you want to know, yeah I guess it's fun. Pinky sure enjoyed it, as did Bubbles, some of the time," Brick said.

"Did they do anything else other than listen and do problems?"

"Well, sometimes, they draw."

Boomer's interest was piqued. "Draw? Draw what?"

"Pictures, landscapes, people, anything the teacher tells them to draw," he said, "but it's mostly boring stuff. Even Pinky finds it boring, and Buttercup too. Your Princess was the only one who seemed to like to draw."

"Princess?"

"Yeah. Big Bad Wolf, Ogre, Princess?"

"Oh! You mean Bubbles!"

"Speaking of Princess, there's another girl actually called Princess. Princess Morbucks. You remember her, of course! She's the stupid curly haired girl who thinks she should be a Rowdyruff."

"She's silly thinking she can be Rowdyruff Boy!" Boomer agreed.

"Well?" Butch asked.

"Well what?"

"Still insist we should go?"

"Yes. An order, Butch, Boomer."

"I don't like it! But an order's an order! Lead on, leader boy!"

He nodded, and he flew, beckoning his brothers to follow him.

"Remember, hide yourself. We don't want trouble, okay?" Brick instructed as they flew.

"Yeah. We'll hide ourselves," Butch assured, with a wicked smirk forming on his face.

The three boys flew high, and when they were above the school, flew down as fast as they could to minimize any chances of being spotted.

Brick smiled as he thought of his plan. It was perfect. His brothers would learn, they would assert their natural superiority over the girls, they would beat the puffs in a fair fight, and the natural order would again be restored!

He looked at the direction of the classroom, and turned on his x-ray vision. His brothers did the same as they saw Ms Keane enter and began the lessons.

The leader of the Rowdyruffs observed his brothers. They were listening. Good. He knew Ms Keane would have that effect on them. He was sure they were learning too.

Learning.

Brick loved learning.

He was sure that they, being his brothers, would love it too. And they would just listen, and do nothing that would get them in trouble.

How wrong he was.

* * *

_**29\. Burning Pranks** _

He was watching Ms Keane write something on the board. All eyes were on her, when there was a scream. Brick looked at the source, and to his astonishment, an empty seat, at the very back of the classroom, was on fire.

He looked at both his brothers, and he could see a mischievous smile on his blue eyed brother's lips.

"What?" Brick demanded. "Didn't I tell you—"

"Nobody would know," Boomer said, chuckling.

_I'm gonna kill you if they discover us!_

There was the start of panic. Unfortunately, Pinky ended it by blowing the burning chair and covering it with ice.

Wait! When did she get that power? Ice coming from her mouth? That was a cool, pun intended. So his middle brother had his shield. His dumb blond of a brother had his bat. The blonde puff had her screech. And Pinky had her ice whatever it was they called it. What was his special power? He was a little jealous of the others when he realized that.

"Calm down, the fire's out," said Ms Keane.

"Don't worry Ms Keane. Lessons could continue since the situation is taken care of," Blossom said, her eyes suspiciously looking at Buttercup. "No need to suspend classes."

There was a collective groan from the class.

"I'm sure it's the Powerpuff's fault! Anyone of you could have zapped that chair!" Princess Morbucks accused, looking at the three puffs, and at Buttercup in particular.

"Princess, do you have proof? Don't just accuse someone just because you don't like them!" Ms Keane admonished.

"But isn't it obvious? Who else could have burned that chair that easily while we're looking at you, Ms Keane, and while you were looking at the board?" the spoiled heiress argued.

"True, but that isn't proof," Ms Keane said. "Now girls, none of you turned around and burned the chair while no one is looking, right?"

Blossom denied the charge. "How could we? I am seated at front, and Bubbles at the middle. Somebody would have seen us if we tried it."

"Yeah, but Buttercup's at the very back. The burnt chair is behind her. Nobody could have seen her do it," Princess, who was in the middle, charged, looking at the green puff at the back. "Mitch, you're sitting next to her. Did you see her do it?"

"What? Me?" Mitch said as all eyes were on him. "No. I was looking at Ms Keane. I didn't notice Buttercup do anything."

"But Mitch," Princess said, with a grin in her face, "are you sure Buttercup couldn't have turned her head for one second and eyebeamed the chair?"

"Um, no, but—"

"Did you have your eyes on her every single second?" asked the heiress.

"No."

"Were you looking at her when it was burned?"

"No. I was looking at Ms Keane and the board, and then I heard Harry Pitt shout that the chair's on fire!"

The rest of the kids looked at the green puff as if she did it.

"Buttercup, did you do it?" Ms Keane asked.

"No, I didn't," said the green eyed puff. "I didn't look behind me! Look, the door to the balcony is open! Someone could have done it from outside!"

"We're on the second floor!" Mitch Mitchelson said, grinning. "Unless they can fly, there's no way anyone could have fired on the chair. And there's no one on the balcony. I'll even check if Ms Keane would allow me."

"Go ahead."

The brown haired boy went to the balcony, walked around, and came back. "Nothing."

"Besides," Princess continued, "that chair doesn't burn easily. There wasn't any gas, or anything that could make it burn that quickly. The only thing that could are your powers!"

"So Buttercup did it!" Mitch Mitchelson concluded, a grin gracing his face at the prospect of Buttercup being in trouble.

"I didn't do it!" Buttercup insisted frantically.

Brick smiled as he watched the scene. Maybe Boomer's idea wasn't so bad after all.

"Look class, we don't know what caused the fire," said Ms Keane, "So we'll have to conduct an investigation, and—"

Something rang. Brick looked at the source of the sound. For the first time, he noticed that there was a phone with a smiling face, colored white and red.

"The Powerpuff Hotline!" a random student shouted, pointing at it.

_So that's what that ugly thing is called!_

"Yes we know, idiot!" Mitch Mitchelson said, hitting him in the head.

"But it's my first time to see it! I wasn't with you in kindergarten!" the student whined.

"Hello Mayor?" Pinky said, grabbing the phone. "A bank robbery? The Townsville National Bank? We're on our way. Ms Keane—"

"Go on, girls, I know," Ms Keane said, waving her hand and dismissing them.

"Thanks! Let's go girls!" Blossom commanded, the three girls flying out through the balcony. The balcony had high railings to keep a normal kid from falling.

_It looks like it was made for those stupid Powerpuff Girls. Oh my! They might see us!_

Luckily, the girls did not bother to turn and look back as they flew to the city. They would have seen the three boys if they did so. Brick was relieved as he watched the girls disappear into the city, while keeping his ears on the classroom below.

"Look Ms Keane, just because they are the Powerpuff Girls, doesn't mean that they could just get away with burning chairs!" Princess Morbucks argued.

"Buttercup did not burn that chair! She's a good girl!" a girl with brown hair argued.

"Easy for you to say, Robyn Snyder! You're friends with them!" Princess shot back.

"And easy for you to say she did it! You're enemies!" Robyn retorted.

The bell rang, and it was recess. Brick motioned for his brothers to hide somewhere else.

"Where?" Butch asked.

Brick wondered, and saw a cloud above them. "Up there."

"Why there?"

"Those girls would be back, and we're gonna be the first thing they see if we stay here," Brick explained.

The three flew up and hid on the low lying clouds, about 500 feet above the school. Their superhearing could still hear the loudest sounds of the school. They also used their telescopic vision, a power they accidentally discovered while practicing their x-ray vision. It was really useful for long distance spying. Sadly, it can't be combined with the x-ray vision. It would so awesomely and ridiculously overpowered if that were so.

* * *

_**30\. Mice in the Sky** _

Brick himself looked at the direction of the city, where he kept a lookout for the Powerpuff Girls. He glanced at Boomer at his side, and he was holding…

A mouse?

"Boomer, what are you?" Brick asked.

"Just look," Boomer said, and with a precise aim, threw it on the playground.

It landed on the head of the Morbucks girl.

And survived.

They could just hear the loud scream, the laughter of the other kids, and they could observe the redheaded heiress ran around as the mouse ran under her uniform.

Boomer was one mischievous fellow, Brick noted. First the chair, and now this? But he enjoyed it too much to scold him for it. In fact, he gave a friendly slap on his blond brother's back for this delightful entertainment.

"That was really really cool, Boom!" Brick said.

"Yeah! Didn't know you had it in you! And the chair! I thought it was lame! But then, look at what happened to Butters!" Butch said, with a sick grin, giving a friendly punch on his baby brother's shoulder.

The arrival of the Powerpuff Girls did not help matters, as Buttercup promptly laughed along, with Bubbles trying to stifle her laughter, but in the end succumbed. Blossom tried the longest, but laughed too.

In the clouds above, the boys finally laughed too, loud. Brick figured out that there was no reason for the girls to be using their superhearing, and even if they were using it, they had no reason to direct it high above the playground, into the clouds. In fact, none of the Powerpuffs even looked at the clouds. They were too busy laughing at Princess.

...

* * *

Recess ended, the kids returned to their classrooms, and the boys resumed their places on the roof, spying, and learning. Brick hoped that Butch and Boomer were learning. After all, that's the entire purpose of the exercise.

Immediately, he noticed something. Or rather smelled something.

Princess Morbucks reeked of rat pee. She could be seen grabbing her things, and ran screaming, mad and embarrassed, to the side of the road.

"I don't know how, and I don't know why, but you, Powerpuff Girls, are behind this!" Princess shouted.

Her limo arrived, and she got in.

The three boys struggled really hard to contain their laughter, and the kids in the classroom, having no such inhibition, were laughing uncontrollably. Princess Morbucks would never live this down.

"Calm down class," said Ms Keane. "It's not her fault a rat just landed on her head."

"Hey, Buttercup, you did it, right?" Mitch asked. "After all, how else could a rat just land on her head?"

"Yeah," said Harry. "That's cool! You really showed her! Nobody accuses you of burning a chair and gets away with it!"

Buttercup opened her mouth and said, "yeah, nobody gets away with it!"

"Buttercup!" Blossom gasped.

"Well, nobody does!" she smugly said.

_So Buttercup isn't above taking credit for someone else's work! Interesting!_

"Buttercup, did you?" asked Ms Keane.

"No Ms Keane, I did not," she said, but in a tone that communicated to her classmates that she said it merely to avoid trouble, a tone Blossom was perfectly familiar with.

"As for the chair, we really haven't made any progress," Ms Keane continued. "I've asked the school staff if it's possible to climb up and light a fire on the chair while nobody notices, and they all said it was impossible. Unless you could fly."

The class looked at Buttercup.

"I didn't do it!" she said, this time with conviction.

"I'm not saying you did," said Ms Keane. "The investigation isn't over yet."

Brick's smirk grew. It wasn't over, but they won't find out it was his brother! Boomer finally used that head of his!

Ms Keane resumed her lessons, teaching geography.

* * *

…

The boys stayed on the roof until noon, when they left to have lunch. They did not return in the afternoon, since Brick decided that the afternoon was their "fun" time. After all, what's the point in having the freedom to leave when they please if they would stay all day at school and only leave when the regular students leave too?

"Man, class could be so much fun!" Boomer admitted as they ate their stolen pizza at their shack. "But only if you're not part of it!"

Brick nodded.

"Fooey! I want to beat them all up for being weaklings!" Butch ranted.

"Me too. But we'd be found," Brick argued as they ate some fries, also stolen from a local restaurant.

"So what? We'll beat them up!" the green eyed ruff grumbled.

"So tomorrow, we'll go back," Brick stated, ignoring the middle brother's last word.

Both brothers did not make any objections, to the eldest ruff's relief. At least he was able to change their minds just a bit.

"And Boom, be careful. We don't want to be caught, okay?"

"Don't worry big bro, I ain't letting us be caught!" the blond assured.

* * *

_**31\. New Mysteries** _

…

Blossom had a lot on her mind as they flew home from school. Like, what really happened to the chair? She had a new mystery to untangle, and the prime suspect was her own sister! She frowned. She not only had to unmask the so-called ghosts, but she also had to save her sister!

Even as her classmates said that she's innocent, their eyes said something different. Even Ms Keane. They all silently accused Buttercup.

"Look, I didn't do it!" her middle sister said as they landed on the front porch of the house.

Blossom agreed. "I know."

"You don't believe me," she retorted as they went up to their room.

"We do!" Bubbles said. "You're too good to play such a trick. PROFESSOR! WE'RE HOME!"

"But they think I did it!" Buttercup said as they changed from their uniforms to their usual matching dresses. "Don't get me wrong, it was cool! But I didn't do it!"

"Yes, but if it's not you, then who?" Blossom asked as the Professor came to their room. The girls were already fully changed by that time.

"Hello, Professor."

"Hello, my little girls. How was school?"

"Fine. Listen, we would like to spend time again in the library," Blossom said, "at the usual time."

"Do you have to, Blossom?" asked the Professor, worry still evident in his voice. "After all, those ghosts can hurt you."

"They can, but so can other villains," Buttercup retorted.

"And they won't hurt us if they knew we won't do anything bad like disturb them," Bubbles added.

His black eyes scanned his girls lovingly, and a frown formed in his face. "What's the matter, girls?"

"Oh nothing's the matter," Buttercup said.

Blossom and Bubbles, unable to directly lie, just kept silent.

"Buttercup?" he said in a tone that told them he knew something was up.

"Well, Professor, everyone in school thinks I burned the chair at the back!" she grumbled.

"Yeah Professor!" Bubbles spoke. "We heard a scream, and we all looked back, and the chair behind Buttercup was in flames!"

"And they all think I did it! Princess even told me to my face!" she mumbled.

"Now why would they think that? Didn't anybody see what happened?" asked the Professor.

"That's just it! She was sitting at the back, everyone is looking at the board and on Ms Keane, Ms Keane herself was writing something on the board, and then we smelled something burning. I was able to put it out with my ice breathe, but the chair was ashes by then," said Blossom. "Nothing could have burned that chair that fast, unless someone was using laser."

"But that chair, if I could remember, was next to an open balcony! You know that balcony was specially made for you girls in case of an emergency," the Professor said. "Couldn't someone climb and burn the chair while no one's looking?"

"But that's just it! The railing around the balcony, at least the outer part, had vines with thorns! And no one could have climbed it, and burned that chair that fast. At least not someone who's normal," Blossom argued. "It could be a villain. But it's not their style! They'd just barge in and attack us head on!"

"Well, how about Him? It could be a trick from the devil himself," the Professor opined.

"If it was Him, he would've made his presence known. He likes to play tricks on us, but he'd want us to know that he did it," Blossom argued.

The phone rang.

"Excuse me, girls," he said, and left their room. The girls heard him go down and pick up the phone. They followed him downstairs, to the living room.

"Hello Ms Keane. Yeah, she told me. So what did the investigation tell you? Laser? That couldn't be! So Buttercup… No! It can't be! Well, I'm glad there's no firm conclusion yet. Thanks."

"Well?" asked Blossom.

"According to the investigation, it was laser that burned the chair. A lighter or a match couldn't have started a fire and burned it that fast that completely," said the Professor. "And there was no trace of anyone climbing the wall during that time. So the only suspect is…"

He stopped.

"Me," Buttercup said.

"Well, they haven't made any firm conclusion yet."

"But I'm sure they saw some villains flying around the vicinity," Blossom argued.

"No. Nobody saw anyone flying around," said the Professor.

"It's not me! Why would I burn the stupid chair?" asked the green puff.

"I know you didn't. You can't do it," said the Professor. "The investigation isn't over. I'm sure we can find out what really happened."

"Don't worry, Buttercup," said Bubbles, hugging her sister, "I'm sure we'll find out who really did it."

"Well, I sure hope so. Wait. Do you think it could be, you know, the ghosts of Townsville Library? I mean, they did write that message on your notebook, Blossom," Buttercup said.

"The ghosts? No way! They don't play mean tricks! They just issue warnings," said Bubbles, "and they won't hurt anyone who isn't disturbing them! It isn't the ghosts!"

After that, the Professor went down to begin preparing dinner.

* * *

…

"Why do we have to spend time in this place again?" asked Buttercup as they stood in the library. It was seven in the evening, and they had just eaten dinner at home.

Blossom sighed. Typical for Buttercup to whine about doing their job if it did not involve violence.

"We want to catch the ghosts," the redhead explained.

"But we've been doing this for the last hundred years, and we still haven't caught them!" the green eyed puff ranted.

"Patience, Buttercup. The one who is most patient, not the one who's rash, will get her quarry," Blossom said. "We'll get the ghosts."

"And then we can apologize to them for disturbing their reading!" Bubbles said.

_How can she still believe the "ghosts" were nice after they hit her in the head?_

"Yeah. Yeah," Blossom said. "In the meantime, let's do our homework."

The three girls, had, as usual, brought their bags. They settled on the chairs and tables as if they were back in kindergarten, and began doing their work.

"I hope those ghosts show up early so we have an excuse not to do our homework," Buttercup mumbled as she opened her book to the page assigned by her teacher.

They sat on the couches of the elementary section, waiting for something to happen. In the meantime, they did their homework, or read to entertain themselves.

Unfortunately, the ghosts didn't make an appearance that night. Blossom was again disappointed, but that did not discourage her.

_Patience, Blossom. One day, those so-called ghosts will make a mistake. And then… And then… They would pay. Just like the person who actually burned the chair, and the one who threw the mouse on Princess' head, though she did deserve it. Well, it's the principle of the thing. Whoever did it must say sorry. Speaking of which, why did my sister…_

…

* * *

"Buttercup, why did you tell them that it was you who threw that mouse?" asked Blossom as they flew home.

"Yeah. We were with you the entire time, and you didn't throw any mouse," Bubbles added.

"I didn't say that I threw it!" Buttercup defended with a smirk on her face, chuckling at the memory.

"Mitch asked you if you threw it, and you said Princess deserved it!"

"I'm telling the truth! She did deserve it!" Buttercup defended.

"You didn't deny it either!" the puff leader shot back.

Buttercup laughed. "Oh I did when Ms Keane asked."

"Everybody thinks you did it just to stay out of trouble," Blossom retorted, "especially with the way you said it."

"It's not my fault my words were misinterpreted by others," said Buttercup.

"Yeah, like they misinterpreted it when you denied burning the chair!"

Buttercup flew in front of Blossom and stopped. "That's different."

"How?"

"Because I really didn't burn that stupid chair."

"And you really didn't throw that mouse on her head."

"Stop it, okay? Princess deserved it! Who actually threw the mouse doesn't matter!" Buttercup sneered before flying home.

Blossom wanted to argue, but decided to hold her tongue. She was already sleepy, and was not ready for another shouting match.

…

* * *

_**32\. Harry Pitt in Trouble** _

_September 13, 2004, Monday…_

The day started like any other day. The Powerpuffs were at school, listening to Ms Keane as she spoke in front. The chair that was burnt was replaced, and there was no word spoken about the incident. The perpetrator had not yet been caught. Harry Pitt exchanged places with Mitch Mitchelson, since Buttercup was still not happy that Mitch helped "incriminate" her regarding the burning chair by his "investigation".

It was the third subject of the day.

Mathematics.

"Okay class, today, we're going to learn what are odd and even numbers," she spoke.

Blossom, of course, already knew what Ms Keane was talking about. She already read about it before. Listening to her teacher was like playing a recording of her book. It was almost identical, but not quite. Ms Keane had a way of teaching that makes even things that she already knew quite interesting, and she as a result, looked forward to her lessons even more. It not only reinforced her knowledge, but entertained her too.

And when the teacher asked questions, she would always be the first to raise her hand. Ms Keane needed to know that she always read her lessons, always followed her instructions, always does her homework, always volunteered for anything asked. The others said that she was a teachers' pet and a nerd. She doesn't care. She's the brightest, and the leader. As a leader, she _needed_ to be the smartest and be the most responsible one.

She _was_ the smartest and the most responsible one.

And she knew it too.

And she would be _the_ role model to little kids everywhere.

What kind of role model would she be if she wasn't perfect? Or if she did not have the highest grades? Or if she doesn't do everything right?

Of course, she's not perfect, literally. She's allowed her little foibles. After all, even the greatest men and women have their own little faults.

Right now, she's listening to the teacher's lecture as if it was music. It was so soothing as knowledge entered her brain and further increased her intelligence.

So she got irritated when something interrupted her lessons. Like a shout from the back. And a flash of bright light that necessitated Ms Keane stopping her teaching to deal with the new problem.

Again, it happened when Ms Keane was writing something on the board. Thus, she did not see what happened.

Blossom looked at the back.

_Oh for the love of …._

There was a little smoke surrounding Harry Pitt. There were burnt marks on him, but curiously, he was not hurt at all.

"Girls!" Blossom shouted. She turned to the teacher. "Ms Keane?"

"Go ahead, girls," she said, giving permission.

The three Powerpuffs quickly flew out of the room, through the balcony, ready to face whatever villain that tried to attack the students. And they found…

Nothing.

They looked around, on the grounds, on the roof, and there's no sign of anyone or anything villainous. They asked the groundskeeper, and he saw nothing.

They looked around the sky, and they saw nothing under the low-lying thick autumn clouds.

"What? Again?" Buttercup asked, aghast.

"Whoever tried that sure is sneaky," Blossom concluded as they returned to the classroom.

"Well girls? Who did it?" asked Ms Keane.

"Where's Harry?" Bubbles asked.

"He's in the clinic," said Mike Believe.

"We didn't catch, or for that matter, even see, who did it," Blossom replied, answering their teacher's question. "Nothing. No sign at all."

"Buttercup did it!" Princess Morbucks accused.

"Princess!" Ms Keane scolded.

"But Harry was hit by a laser ball from Buttercup's direction," Princess argued. "And nobody else saw what really happened. We all had our eyes in front! Even Harry didn't see that it wasn't Buttercup. He felt it came from his left side! And who was on his left? Buttercup!"

"Buttercup, did you notice anything?" asked Ms Keane.

"I didn't! I only knew what happened when I saw the flash and smoke!" she defended.

"Anybody else see what Buttercup was doing at that exact moment?" Mitch asked.

Nobody raised their hand. Buttercup and Harry, after all, were at the back.

"I didn't do it! I was framed!" Buttercup shouted frantically. "And nobody saw me do it!"

"Who else could have made a laser ball and threw it at him?" asked Princess. "Blossom was at the very front, and everyone saw her, so it wasn't her. Bubbles was at the middle. You were at the very back. Nobody saw what you were doing."

"Exactly! Nobody _saw me do it_!" the green puff retorted.

"So you admit nobody saw you do it?" Princess repeated.

"Yeah, _nobody saw me do it_!"

"So you did do it! You admitted it!" Mitch Mitchelson jumped, pointing an accusing finger at the puff. "You did it but you're just boasting that nobody saw you did it!"

"What? Don't twist my words!" Buttercup shouted.

"Class! Let's settle this. Buttercup, did you form that laser ball and hit Harry with it?" asked Ms Keane.

"No. I did not. I was listening to you, Ms Keane," Buttercup explained.

"Listen, Buttercup did not do it!" Blossom nearly shouted. "She's a powerpuff girl! She can't do it!"

"Yeah! Buttercup is the nicest girl ever!" Bubbles defended. "She could not have done it!"

"Well, if not Buttercup, then who? It's only she who could've done it!" Princess Morbucks shouted.

"Yeah. Buttercup, admit it!" Mitch Mitchelson added in support.

Blossom shook her head. Again, something that they can't explain happened in class. And again, Buttercup was the one everyone suspects. Why do these things keep happening to her?

"I didn't do it!" she growled. "And if anyone tries to say I did it, I'm gonna kick your butt!"

"Yeah, that's a sure sign you're innocent," Princess bitingly remarked.

"Look class, I'm sure there's a perfectly rational explanation for all of this. And we just can't blame her without proof. Just because she has powers doesn't mean that she's automatically to blame," Ms Keane lectured, taking control of the situation. "Don't worry. An investigation will happen, and we're going to find out what really happened."

"If that investigation if halfway competent, then it'll find the obvious! It's Buttercup!" Princess Morbucks stated.

The spoiled heiress suddenly found her yellow sweatshirt being grabbed by Buttercup's left hand. The puff's right hand was raised in a threatening manner. "Say that again and I'll sock you in the eye!"

"Buttercup, put Princess down!" Ms Keane admonished. "Princess, apologize to Buttercup for accusing her. Buttercup, apologize to Princess."

"Oh I'm so sorry, Buttercup," Princess manage to say as soon as Buttercup let go. It was clear, however, to everyone, that it was not sincere.

"I apologize," Buttercup mumbled, also not sincere.

* * *

_**33\. Busted!** _

The bell rang and cut the tension as the students went to the playground.

The puff leader put a hand on her middle sister's shoulder. "It's okay. We know you didn't do it."

"I know. If only the rest of them believed me too," she grumbled as they walked to the playground.

"They do. It's only Mitch and Princess," Bubbles said.

"Don't make any excuses for them, Bubbles," Buttercup growled. She looked around. "Where's Mitch and Princess?"

The pink powerpuff looked around and saw no sign of the two. "I think you might have scared off those two."

"Aw c'mon Buttercup! They really don't believe you did it," Bubbles reasoned as they settled under a tree on the playground. "And Mitch and Princess were only teasing."

"It doesn't matter," the green eyed powerpuff remarked, "they still accused me in front of our class! And you know what? If I were the other kids, and I don't know me, I would've believed those two too! I mean, who else could've done it but me?"

"Did you?" Bubbles asked.

"Of course not, stupid!" Buttercup remarked. "My God Bubbles, you're becoming as dumb as those Rowdyruffs!"

"We know you didn't do it," said Blossom. "But the question is who—"

Suddenly, she felt a tiny pair of feet land on her head, then crawl down her long hair. Then she remembered what happened to Princess Morbucks. The mouse. The pee. The smell.

She screamed. "A MOUSE! A MOUSE!" she said as she ran around, trying to get whatever it was on her out of her hair. She can feel it crawling on her neck to her shoulder and it only made it worse.

"There, there," Bubbles said, and suddenly, whatever it was that was crawling all over Blossom was gone. And she could see it was in Bubbles' hand. She was stroking its head, and the creature responded positively.

It was a squirrel.

The leader of the Powerpuffs breathed a sigh of relief. At least it wasn't a mouse.

She looked around, and a crowd of students had gathered around them.

"Buttercup, did you do that?" asked Mike Believe.

"No. How could I? I was besides her all the time! The stupid creature fell out of the tree. That's all."

"Wait. It wasn't?" Bubbles said as she listened to the sounds made the squirrel. "You just didn't fall? What happened?"

"Bubbles?" Blossom asked as she turned to her sister.

"So someone threw you to the tree, so you would fall on her head? Who threw you?"

Blossom's, and for that matter, Buttercup's attention, was on their squirrel speaking baby sister.

"A boy? What did he look like? Blond with blue eyes? They were three? What did the other two look like? Red hair. Red eyes. The other has black hair, and green eyes. Where are they? In the school building. Hiding in the janitor's closet."

"Girls, I think—"

"It's the Rowdyruff Boys," Blossom whispered. "Let's flush them out."

"Thanks Mr Squirrel," Bubbles said, letting the creature go. "Let's get 'em!"

The three girls approached the building. The redhead leader noticed the tiny window of the janitor's closet. Normally, small kids could not reach the window, but if they could float…

"COME OUT, ROWDYRUFFS! WE KNOW YOU'RE THERE!" Blossom shouted, and for good measure, turned on her x-ray vision. It confirmed the squirrel's tale. She saw them.

"YEAH! I COULD TALK TO SQUIRRELS!" Bubbles shouted, "SO WE KNOW IT'S YOU!"

The three boys quickly exited through the tiny window, one by one. It was big enough to just fit one ruff.

"Great, Boomer!" Brick said as they floated, facing the girls.

"How should I know she could speak to animals?" Boomer defended as he assumed a defensive position.

Butch was twitching, excitement showing in his features, as he prepared for a fight.

"So it's you! I should've known that only trouble makers like you can play such a dirty trick," Blossom said.

Brick smirked. "Don't be too angry! It was really funny how you reacted, Pinky! Shouting and running around like a lame-o idiot!"

"Were you the ones who burned the chair and blasted Harry?" Buttercup asked.

Boomer proudly smiled. "I did it! And it was so fun! And you couldn't figure it out that it was me all along!"

_So it was them. Of course, only they could create laser like us! Wait. What about the message from the ghost? Did they write on my notebook too?_

"And I guess you're the one who tore my notebook, and wrote those words about the ghost," Blossom asked.

Brick made a bewildered face. "Huh? What are you talking about? I didn't tear any notebook."

Blossom knew it! It can't be them! The ghosts were reading. The boys don't read. One more test should confirm it.

"Hey Brick, what's the capital of France?"

"Huh? What's a prans? And what's the meaning of capital?" asked the rowdyruff leader in an ignorant manner, which caused Bubbles and Buttercup to chuckle.

She knew it! Those that tore her notebook, the ones who pretended to be ghosts, were not them. Impossible! They were reading a geography book in the library! The so-called ghosts were not the same creeps that burned the chair behind Buttercup and attacked Harry.

"You are going to pay for framing Buttercup!" Blossom proclaimed.

"Boys, stand your ground, but remember what I told you," Brick said, eliciting a frown from Butch and a smile from Boomer.

"Do we have to? I want to stay and kick their ass," the green ruff whined.

"Yes. On my signal."

"Whatever it is you're planning, don't bother! We'll kick your butt and make you pay for making a fool out of me!" Buttercup, raring to fight, shouted. She, at last, had been vindicated.

Then Blossom heard the hotline ring and her heart sank.

Ms Keane appeared on the balcony of their classroom. "Girls! The mayor called! There's a monster attacking the city."

"Oh my God," Blossom said, worried that they might not be able to fight both monster and the Rowdyruffs. Well, scratch that. They can fight, but they will lose if they tried to fight both at the same time.

She looked at her counterpart. His red eyes suddenly brightened as soon as he heard the news and a huge grin formed on his face.

_One day, Ruff! One day! Your luck will run out!_

"See ya later, babe!" he shouted, and said, "Now!"

Brick, followed by his brothers, flew as fast as possible, in the opposite direction of the city.

"Hey, come back here, cowards!" Buttercup shouted, wanting to chase them. "Fight us!"

"Not now, Buttercup! We have to save the city!"

"But I want to teach them a lesson!" she grumbled.

"Me too. They really need a spanking. But we can't do that without taking care of the city first!" Blossom reasoned. "And we can't split up. That's a recipe for disaster against the boys! Let's go!"

Buttercup nodded, and the three Powerpuffs headed towards the city.

* * *

_**34\. The Green Fury** _

"Let's do this fast, and let's find those stupid Rowdyruffs!" she shouted as she flew as fast as possible.

The monster was a typical giant lizard from Monster Island. It was already rampaging on the beach and was headed towards the central business district. It was colored green, with scales, and three horns, two over its eyes, and one on its nose.

"Buttercup, Bubbles, let's do the plan—" Blossom ordered, but her little green eyed sister did not listen.

"Screw all plans!" Buttercup shouted as she dove, head first, into the monster at the neck. She ripped through it like hot knife through butter, ripping apart its throat and killing it in the process, and decapitating it too for good measure. She threw the head to the sea, and picked up the body and threw it to the sea too.

"Buttercup—" Blossom began.

"Enough talk. Let's go after those Rowdyruff Boys!" she shouted.

So that's why Buttercup was so reckless. She wanted to get the monster fight over with so she can get on with what she really wished—kicking the boys' butt and teaching them a lesson about messing with her.

She flew as fast as she could, her sisters trailing her, stopping over the school.

"Where are they?" she asked in a low and deadly tone.

"Don't you remember? They flew that way, away from the city!" Bubbles said when she caught up.

The green puff, without a word, flew off in that direction.

"Wait, Buttercup, we don't know—" Blossom began, but it was too late. She shook her head and sighed. She could not blame her sister, but she was not thinking.

"I'm gonna wreck them! I'm gonna kick their hides to kingdom come! I'm gonna break every bone in their stupid bodies! Nobody does that to me and gets away with it!" she shouted as she flew in rage.

However, try as she might, she cannot see any of the boys.

"ROWDYRUFF BOYS! YOU HEAR ME!" she shouted as they were over Farmsville. "I KNOW YOU'RE HIDING SOMEWHERE! IF YOU CAN HEAR ME, SHOW YOURSELVES, OR BE BRANDED COWARDS FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIVES!"

What was her sister trying to do? Did she even notice the Rowdyruffs?

"Buttercup, you're not even sure they're here. They can't possibly hear you!" Blossom scolded.

" **I don't care! I want to fight them**!" she shouted, and flew back to the city, where Stanley Whitfield, before a camera, was reporting on the rampage of the latest monster.

"And thanks to the Powerpuff Girls, the day—" he began, but was interrupted as Buttercup grabbed the microphone.

What was she up to now?

"Buttercup, that's rude!" Blossom said, folding her hands in front of her.

"Rowdyruff Boys, listen to me! I am challenging you to a fight! Meet us above Mojo Jojo's observatory at four p.m. Be there or be forever branded a coward," she said to the camera, then gave back the microphone to Stanley Whitfield.

_That's crazy! Buttercup, you didn't even consult me! This involves me and Bubbles too!_

The angry and toughest puff flew back to school, followed by her sisters.

"Are you nuts?" Blossom scolded was they flew back.

"I am. So what? I want to lay my hands on them and beat them to an inch of their lives!" she said.

"But we're not sure we can even beat them!" Blossom argued. "We're too evenly matched! They can win. And then what will happen?"

" _I don't care._ We'll win, and we will _beat them up_!" Buttercup said as they landed on the campus.

Fortunately, the bell rang just as they landed on the grounds, signaling an end to recess. They shuffled into their classrooms, where they explained to their teacher that it was the Rowdyruff Boys who were responsible for the burning of the chair and Harry Pitt being hit by a laser ball. Harry was perfectly okay, and he was back in the classroom without a scratch on his body.

Buttercup was utterly vindicated. Blossom was glad, though she was peeved that she acted so recklessly. She was dreading the coming battle with the Rowdyruffs, and she kept thinking of tactics and strategies to beat the boys.

* * *

…

"Where are they?" Buttercup muttered as they floated above the laboratory of Mojo Jojo.

It was four p.m.

Blossom too was a bit impatient. She finally sketched in her mind a plan to deal with their counterparts. She hoped it would work.

No, she _knew_ it would work.

She too was angry at them. First of all, they interrupted classes. And they had the temerity to frame Buttercup! Then of course, she was humiliated when she ran around the grounds thinking there was a mouse on her hair! Thank God for Bubbles!

And if Bubbles had not talked to that squirrel, they would never have discovered the truth, and Buttercup would still be suspected.

_Come on, you stupid Rowdyruffs! Show yourself! Don't be afraid! Don't be cowards! My plan is perfect! You can't possibly win this one._

"See any sign of them, Bubbles?" the leader asked.

"No sign," Bubbles whispered as she scanned the sky.

"I'm gonna pound them when they arrive!" Buttercup ranted as she stretched and prepared herself for the coming fight.

* * *

…

It was five in the afternoon.

"Where are they?" asked Buttercup. "They're late."

"I don't know," said Blossom, sitting on top of the laboratory, still going over her battle plans in her head. This was probably the first time she had an entire day to plan just one battle with the Rowdyruffs. She was not going to fail!

"They're not going to show up!" Bubbles said as she floated higher.

"They're gonna show up. If it's one thing the boys like, it's a good fight," Buttercup replied.

…

* * *

It was six in the evening.

" **Those cowards! Those stupid fraidy cats! Those chickens**!" Buttercup shouted as she waited for her enemies.

"Be patient. Maybe they haven't watched the evening news? I'm sure they'll come here once they learn of your challenge," Bubbles said.

Blossom was deep in thought. Although it was not unwelcome as it would give her time to refine her battle plan, the boys should've been there. After all, it would have been broadcasted all over town on the six p.m. evening news.

_Wait! Six p.m. evening news?_

"Your challenge on TV won't be watched by anyone until the evening news, you know, and it won't air until six p.m.," Blossom said. "You made a mistake."

"Mistake?" Buttercup asked.

"Yeah. You said that they should meet us here at four in the afternoon, but that challenge won't air until six in the evening," the pink puff explained. "Unless they can travel back in time, there's no way they can meet us on time."

"Oh my," Buttercup exclaimed, feeling utterly stupid, as she smacked her own face. She was too angry and hotheaded to think clearly when she made that announcement on TV.

"Let's wait an hour and see if they show up," the leader said.

* * *

…

It was seven in the evening.

"They're not going to fight us," said Buttercup, bitter and disappointed.

The pink leader agreed. Where were the boys? Why did they suddenly become cowards? Or did they develop some kind of common sense? Or maybe, they decided not to bother since that would involve time travel? After all, Buttercup issued that challenge for four in the afternoon.

She finally decided to go to their home and confront them there. That way, they will know that they can't hide from the wrath of the Powerpuff Girls. "Let's go to Fuzzy's shack!"

"Yeah. Let's fight them in their own turf!" the green puff explained.

"You've been to their shack, Bubbles! Lead the way!" the redhead commanded.

"We'll teach those boys not to be mean!" Bubbles said as she flew, her sisters right behind her.

The three girls flew to the forest, into the shack of the Rowdyruffs.

"Hey Rowdyruffs! DON'T HIDE, YOU COWARDS!" Buttercup shouted as she barged in and saw…

An empty house.

"The boys aren't here," she said, defeated.

"Maybe they're around here somewhere," Blossom said, turning on her x-ray vision and scanning the area. She found nothing. How would the boys know that they were coming? She looked around, and saw, in the front yard, pieces of bone and the remains of a carcass of a pig that had been roasted. They were here. But they fled as soon as they learned they were coming.

_Smart move. Cowardly, but smart._

"Girls?" the youngest puff offered.

"What?" Buttercup snapped.

"Look. They don't even have TV," she said.

The other two looked around, and Bubbles was right. There was no TV. How can they even know of Buttercup's challenge? No wonder they didn't show up.

"Let's wait for them. They have to sleep, right?" Blossom asked. "Then you can issue your challenge and we can fight before bedtime."

…

* * *

It was ten in the evening...

"Let's go home, Buttercup, or the Professor will get mad," Blossom said, yawning. It was obvious that the boys won't come back, at least for that night.

"This sucks. Where are those good for nothing Rowdyruff Boys?" Buttercup ranted.

"Let's go home, please. This is getting boring," Bubbles argued. "We can get them next time."

Buttercup also yawned. "Next time. We'll get them next time."

The girls flew home, tired and disappointed.

* * *

_**35\. Back to the Library** _

…

Earlier that night, at about 6:45 p.m…

"Aw, why do we have to check the library at this time? We know those powderpuffs will be staying there checking out for the ghosts," Boomer whined as they left their shack after having dinner. "We should just stay home and come here when it's bed time!"

Brick knew his brother had a point. But he wanted to go back and read, and he would always check if the girls would give up their futile quest to unmask the ghosts. They had to give up, right? After all, night after night, there were no ghosts. Brick made sure of that.

Perhaps hitting them in the head and knocking them while pretending to be ghosts wasn't his brightest idea. After all, all it did was to whet their curiosity and determination to get to the bottom of it, not to scare them away. But he shouldn't be surprised that he made such a mistake.

After all, he was still _stupid_ , and dumber that those Powerpuff Girls.

He and his brothers needed to learn. So he was very angry that his brothers messed it up. But it was his fault too. He permitted it. Yes, it was fun messing with the girls that way, but it led to their discovery.

That's because they're stupid. So they made stupid mistakes.

His job was to make sure their stupidity would be gone. But now the avenue of sneaking to the school and learning from Ms Keane was closed.

"We shouldn't have run away from them," Butch ranted as they flew to the library. "We would have beaten them up. We're stronger than them!"

"For the last time, it won't matter much how stronger we are than them, we'd still lose! They're still smarter, and they'll find a way to win," Brick replied. "We can't fight them until we're smarter than them. And we shouldn't have been discovered in the first place!"

"And we wouldn't have," Boomer said, "but how should I know that the Princess can speak to animals? They didn't find out about the other tricks, you know."

"Boom, that was fun, but we shouldn't have risked it!" Brick argued. "Don't you know how to speak to animals?"

"No, I don't. But if the Princess Bubbles can do it, I can too!" he declared. "After all, we're getting smarter, right?"

Brick smirked. "And one more thing. Next time we meet them, we must hide what we learned. Try to look dumb so they'll think we're just the same as before."

"Huh? What do you mean?" asked Butch.

Brick smirked. "Idiot! Do you really think I didn't know what the capital of France was? It's Paris! But I want Pinky to think that I was just as dumb as before! Won't she be surprised when she suddenly learns how smart we are compared to before?"

"Oh I get it! They'll be confused and they'll make mistakes!" Boomer said.

"Exactly," Brick said as they landed on the bushes outside the library.

It was seven p.m.

He turned on his x-ray vision, fully expecting to see the Powerpuff Girls inside the place.

They were not there?

He checked again.

"Brick, I can't see them. They're not—" Boomer stated.

"I know," Brick replied excitedly. Finally, they gave up! For this night at least. Maybe Boomer's pranks were worth it, after all?

"They're not there! Yes! I can finally read about Hercules!" the blond ruff exclaimed enthusiastically.

"And I can read the comic books!" Butch said, twitching at the prospect of reading more violence. "The Flash, Batman, Superman, Major Glory, here I come!"

* * *

…

Brick eagerly plucked a book from the elementary shelves. It was a book on Mathematics. He wanted desperately to master that subject, and to be better than Blossom. It was a tall order, since Pinky was very good at math. But he had faith in himself.

He looked at his brothers, and he was pleased. Boomer was reading another story, about a hero called Hercules, while Butch was engrossed in his comic books. He was sure their vocabulary would expand, and they wouldn't be embarrassed when the girls would use big words.

* * *

…

It was 10 p.m. and it was time to go to sleep. Once again, Brick called a halt to the reading, and switched off the lights before settling down on the soft couch.

Life was good. And it would become better.

Still, something troubled him.

Like Math.

Not the actual math. It was simple and fun.

No, it was something about learning math. Before he went and listened at school, he didn't know he needed to know about Math. Only school taught him that. Sure, reading books that he liked to read was fun and deeply satisfying, but what if there were things that he needed to know that he won't know because he didn't know that he needed to know it? That was the function of school. It gave the students the subjects that were important in life. It gave him knowledge of what he must read about and study. Otherwise, if he learned what he liked and nothing else, he might be a total genius in one subject, and a total moron on another.

He wanted to go back to school and listen to Ms Keane. He wanted to have direction in his learning. And his brothers desperately needed to know things other than what they learned in comics and stories. They needed someone to tell them what to learn.

He had the perfect plan. Unfortunately, Boomer ruined it by doing his tricks and getting themselves discovered. They can't risk doing the same thing.

So what can they do?

They all needed to…

Enroll in school? No, they won't go to school. It was a prison. It was a place to learn, it was true, but it was a prison nonetheless.

Brick pondered what he and his brothers needed in order to really best the girls.

He closed his eyes. As he drifted to sleep, a single thought pervaded his brain. A single, significant seed was planted. He _knew_ what must be done in order to make them really smart.

The Rowdyruff Boys needed a _teacher_.

* * *

**End of Chapter II**

Please, please, kindly leave a review if you liked this story. Thank you!

* * *

 

**Thanks to you all for inspiring me to continue with this tale, my dear readers!**


	4. I-The Teacher

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Brick tries to educate himself and his brothers so they can beat the Powerpuff Girls. Chapter 4. The Rowdyruff Boys asks Ms Keane to teach them-privately. How will Ms Keane react when three evil supervillains suddenly asked her to be their teacher? Will she answer yes or no? How will the boys react if she says no? And if she answers yes, how will they handle being students?

**An Education For Power**

Brick tries to educate himself and his brothers so they can beat the Powerpuff Girls. Chapter 4. The Rowdyruff Boys asks Ms Keane to teach them-privately. How will Ms Keane react when three evil supervillains suddenly asked her to be their teacher? Will she answer yes or no? How will the boys react if she says no? And if she answers yes, how will they handle being students?

* * *

**Book I**

**How to Learn?**

* * *

**Chapter IV**

**The Teacher**

* * *

_**36\. Butch of the Rowdyruffs** _

_October 2, 2004, Friday, at about 9:50 p.m._

"Stop, Lex Luthor! Halt your evil ways, or you will pay the price!"

_Go Lex! Show that good for nothing superhero how evil shall prevail!_

Butch lovingly clutched the pages of the comic book that he was reading. He knew in his brain what the end was going to be, but somehow, somehow, hoped in his heart that, this time, the bad guy would win.

He turned the page.

_Yes! Lex has kryptonut! Surely, Supes can't do anything!_

"Oh no! My only weakness!" the caped hero exclaimed as he fell on his knees.

The bald-headed scientist approached the hero, clutching the glowing green gem that gave him such an edge. "When you are gone, my plan to conquer the world will be fulfilled! No one can stop me!"

_Conquer the World! Go Lex!_

He turned the next page. Superman was able to trick Lex into dropping the gem.

Not again! Please let the bad guy win! Pick it up, Lex! Pick it up!

But it was not to be! Superman was able to isolate the green glowing gem, and he proceeded to beat up Lex's goons.

Despite him rooting for the bald scientist, he really liked watching Superman punch and kick all those goons. Such  _lovely_  violence! Why was it that when Superheroes kick their enemies, and sometimes, even kill them, they were cheered? But when so-called villains do it, they get booed? It was unfair! Bad guys like himself should beat up whomever they want, and they should be cheered! After all, violence was good, right? Violence was the best!

Superman does violence to his enemies. That alone makes up for his sickeningly do-gooderness. It makes him cool. And it makes Batman, or Flash, or Spiderman cool. They do violence! Sure, they only do it to villains. But they do it nonetheless.

But the villains were way cooler! Magneto of X-Men comics was the greatest and way cooler than Wolverine. Lex Luthor was a weakling, but Butch loved his evilness! Galactus was literally god to him!

"Okay boys, it's ten o'clock! Time to go to sleep."

Why does big brother have to be a spoil sport?

"Aw Brick! I'm not yet done reading Aesop's Fables!" the blond sibling whined.

Ah, his youngest brother, the wimp. Even his reading was wimpy and for sissies. At least he got his priorities right about not wanting to go to bed yet.

"Yeah, Brick! I'm not yet finished!" Butch complained.

"It's ten. Time to go to bed!" the leader snapped. "Put it back!"

Butch did as asked. So did Boomer.

His elder brother switched off the lights, and the three settled on the soft couches.

If there was one thing good about his brother's insanity, it was the couches. The soft couches felt so good! He never wanted to lie on another thing again. He never wanted to go back to his hard mattress in their home.

Never!

But they must. Brick said so, or the library goers would find them in the morning. Who cares if they find them? They'll beat them up! But Brick was crazy, so they had to hide like mice!

What had gotten into his leader?

Brick was a bit crazy during the past few weeks. Ever since he got beat up by Blossom. Clearly, Pink Eyes had hit his brother a little bit too hard in the noggin. Why else would he be acting so strange? Like admitting that they were dumber than those idiot Powderpuffs?

But Butch had to admit, his brother's craziness had some nice benefits. Like the couches.

And the comics. He never could imagine life without his precious comic books!

But some of Brick's ideas were not so beneficial. Like going to the Powerpuff School and listening to the teacher. What was Brick thinking when he thought of that? True, Butch learned a little bit, but it was boring. He was thankful that his little brother was able to provide entertainment. He had to contain himself in order to avoid laughing at seeing Buttercup being accused of burning that chair! And of course, throwing that mouse of Princess' Morbucks head was really funny!

But he really appreciated Boomer throwing that squirrel. Without it, they would have been stuck going to school every day, listening to the teacher! It was boring!

Somehow, it led to the girls not hanging out in the library after closing hours, trying to catch "the ghosts". So the boys were able to resume their reading. Boomer, his stupid fairly tales. Brick, his boring textbooks. As for Butch, his exciting comics.

He had to admit. He was learning. Even without realizing it. Even without wanting to learn. He was smarter than before they started. The words he was using was proof of that. Laser. Earth. Orbit. Jab. Hook. Disguise. Flash. Insanity. Diamond. Kryptonite. Identity. All words learned from comic books.

He learned about the solar system from Superman. And also about stars and galaxies. He learned about earthquakes too. And about Geography. He learned more about the United States and the world from reading comics. Like Washington D.C. being the capital, the President being the head of the U.S., New York City being the biggest city, etc. And how Dr Doom is the monarch of Latveria, a tiny country in Eastern Europe. It was amazing how many things one can learn just from reading comics!

The only thing wrong about the current situation was Brick's avoidance of the Powerpuff Girls. What was the cause of his cowardice? No, Brick was not a coward. After what happened in Hell with Him, nobody could accuse his leader of being a coward.  _But what happened to his confidence_? His confidence when it came to their mortal enemies was shot. It was gone. Did he forget that they were stronger than them? Never did Butch feel more ashamed than when the ruffs ran away from the puffs after being discovered in school. Yes, they  _ran away_! There was no way to sugarcoat it. They should've waited for the girls to come back, and fought them honorably, or even fought them dirty. They should not have run away. They must have looked like cowards.

_Cowards! We're not cowards! Then why is Brick so hesitant? Why the need to be smarter before we can fight them?_

But Brick was the leader, and he cannot go against him. Maybe there's a method to his madness? Maybe he's right, and it would lead to them being better than the Powerpuff Girls. But at that night, the toughest ruff just wasn't seeing it.

It was his last thought as he drifted into dreamland…

_Stupid Powerpuff Girls! Casting a spell on Brick! I'm gonna break their bones for messing with my leader!_

* * *

_**37\. Multiplication and Teachers** _

_The next day, October 3, 2004, Saturday…_

It was morning, and they had just finished breakfast. Fishbone were scattered on the grounds outside their shack in the woods—they had caught a big fish in the sea for breakfast and roasted them in the yard outside the shack. Logs were scattered all around—the result of Boomer's overeagerness to chop firewood for their roast. And the woods had turned red or brown or yellow. But not green. Except for trees with needle leaves, which Brick called Pine, Spruce or Cypress or evergreen trees. They remained green. But the forest wasn't all green. Butch frowned. Green was his favorite color. He wanted it to remain green.

"Both of you, I have something to tell you," Brick announced, and the two sat on logs that doubled as chairs as their leader floated before them. He could tell that something was coming up. He had the look on his eyes that told Butch that there would be big changes. He hoped that he would like what Brick would tell them.

"I have been thinking. We have been learning, and we're smarter!" he said.

_Yes we are! We are way smarter than those Powerpuff Girls now. Time to beat them up!_

"But it's not enough."

What? Reading a hundred comic books in more than a month was not enough to make oneself smart? Brick really needed to have his head examined. He wanted to object. He was smart enough. And if he read more comic books, he would become even smarter.

"What do you mean?" asked Boomer.

"Well, we're learning fast, and we can say we know more big words than before," said Brick. "Those sissies can't trick us anymore on that score. But it's not enough."

"What do you mean?" asked Butch.

"Tell me, Butch, what is six times seven?"

"Huh?" asked the green ruff. What does times mean? Perhaps it's time? "It means its seven minutes after six o'clock!"

Butch was proud to have answered that correctly.

"No Butch. It's not time. It's a multiplication problem."

"Huh? What's multiwhatever?"

"It means to multiply," Brick began. "It's actually not that complicated." He began gathering stones and putting on the ground. "Let's say we have three stones. How many stones are there?"

"Three!"

"Very good, Boom. Now let's make two of those."

He got three more stones and put it besides the original three. Why was Brick playing with rocks?

"What are ya doing?" asked Butch.

"See, we have two three rocks. See? Two sets of three rocks."

The middle ruff still did not know where he was going with this.

"So what?" he asked. "This is stupid."

"Count all stones."

"Six," Boomer said, clapping his hand as he did so.

"So three times two equals six. That's multiplication. I wouldn't have learned that if we hadn't gone to school," Brick stated.

Was his brother actually proposing to go to school?

"But I don't wanna go to school!" the blond wimp whined.

Butch agreed. Hopefully, the wimp's whining would tell Brick that this was a bad idea.

"So what? It isn't important to learn multiplication. Is it important?" Butch challenged.

"I don't know. I'm sure it's important. Otherwise, why would they teach it? And we won't know what's important until we learn it," Brick argued. "When we know it, we can decide what's useful and not useful."

"Tell me we're not going to school," the green ruff said, almost pleading. He really didn't want to be part of it.

"We're not. We're getting a teacher," Brick proclaimed.

"What?" Butch asked. His brother had gone nuts!

"What do you mean?"

"It's a tutor, actually. She can teach us what is important, and what is useful," his redheaded brother explained. "We'll hire her."

That didn't mollify Butch. He was opposed to anyone having any sort of power over them, and however Brick might call her, a teacher or tutor would have some power over them. And it's something that he really didn't like.

"I don't like it. It means we have to listen to someone other than each other," Butch finally said.

"True. But it's something we need," Brick said. "And we'll get something out of it. We'll finally be better than those Powersissies, and we can beat them to the ground with our brains."

"Anything that could change your mind about getting a teacher?" asked Butch, hopeful that his brother's mind could be swayed.

"Nope. We're learning from a teacher or a tutor, and that's that!" was his leader's swift reply.

He sighed. Things just had gotten worse. Maybe he'll change his mind once he finds out what it really means to take orders from someone. He knew his brother. He was bossy, and would not be subordinate to anyone.

* * *

_**38\. Teaching the Powerpuffs** _

…

_October 4, 2004, Monday…_

"Okay. Who wants to solve the first problem?"

A familiar figure raised her hand.

Ms Keane sighed. It was expected. The Multiplication problems she wrote on the board were simple. Like "1 x 1" or "5 x 2" type simple. She had begun the task of asking the students to memorize the multiplication table, after spending an entire week explaining the principles behind multiplication. She used pictures, and even videos to help explain the concept. And she can tell that a couple of students were slowly getting it. Like Buttercup Utonium. Or even Princess Morebucks.

But only Blossom really knew what she was talking about. In fact, even before she even attended class, she already knew it. Even in kindergarten, the leader of the Powerpuff Girls knew it.

Of course, it was a delight to hear her recite and get most of the problems right. Though sometimes, her overconfidence would sometimes cause her to make small mistakes. That was the reason Blossom, though always on top, did not have perfect scores all the time.

But it was a bit tiring to hear her voice ninety-nine percent of the time. Where were the other students?

"Yes Blossom?"

"Three times two equals six."

"Very good. That's correct. Now, who can answer the next problem?"

Blossom raised her hand.

_C'mon, somebody else raise their hand._

Nobody else did.

"Blossom?"

"Six times six equals thirty six."

"Very good, Blossom. Now let's do something else."

Hopefully, the next problem would result in more volunteers.

There were six.  _Including_  Blossom.

Time to give the others a chance.

"Mike?"

Mike Believe stood up. "Um, three times zero equals three."

The teacher could not believe what she was hearing. It was so easy! "And why do you say that, Mike?" she asked as the class laughed.

"Well, any number multiplied by zero would result in the same number," Mike explained.

"No Mike, you're confusing multiplying zero with multiplying one. The answer is zero. Any number multiplied by zero is zero."

"Ha, everyone knows that!" Buttercup shouted. "You're as dumb as those Rowdyruffs!"

"Buttercup, be nice!" Ms Keane snapped. The green puff could sometimes be very mean.

"Ha, the loser with an imaginary friend has imaginary numbers!" Princess Morbucks laughed.

The bell rang for recess.

Ms Keane looked on with pride as the students ran, or in the case of the Powerpuff Girls, flew, out of the classroom. "Be careful!" she shouted, as the normal students went to the stairs.

"Ms Keane?"

The blue eyed teacher looked at the employee, a teen-ager, about 19, with blonde hair, brown eyes, and wearing office attire. She was working at the Principal's office.

"Yes, Mara?" asked the teacher.

"The Principal would like to see you. It's about the reply of your request."

The news immediately brightened her day. The request had been to effect a change in the teaching techniques in the school, which Ms Keane believed, would result in better learning for the students. Even if it would not change school policy, she hoped that she at least would be granted permission to implement it in her classes so she can show the others what an improvement her new technique would be.

She walked through the corridors towards a door at the end. She was so sure that it would be approved that she hurriedly opened it, and entered the office.

"Dr. Crowley?"

Robert Crowley was a middle aged man, age 42, married, with three children, the oldest already in college, the youngest, in the sixth grade. He had light brown hair that was thin and balding, and piercing grey eyes. He sat in his chair, and the look on his face told her that she might be disappointed.

Behind him, on the wall, was his family portrait. Besides it was his diploma and other marks of academic distinction. It was obvious that he was overqualified to be mere principal of a private school. He had a Ph.D. and was more suited for a University.

"Sandy," he said, "please take a seat."

She did as told.

"I have some good news, and some bad news. Let's have the good news first. I've receive the report of the investigations regarding the chair and the laser that hit Harry Pitt," he began.

She already knew the result. Ever since the Rowdyruff Boys confessed, everyone knew what had happened.

"It was the Rowdyruff Boys!" he said.

Bingo! That was painfully obvious.

"As for the mouse on Princess' Morbucks head, we still don't know who did it. It's probably the Rowdyruffs, but there's no hard proof that it's them. Circumstantial evidence, yes, but not hard proof," explained Mr Crowley.

"How about who tore the notebook?" asked Ms Keane.

"Probably the ghosts," said the principal. "The Powerpuff Girls swore that the one who wrote the note and the ghosts in the library were one and the same. Now for the bad news."

"Yes, Dr Crowley?"

"I'm so sorry, Ms Keane, but the school superintendent denied your request," said the Principal, handing a letter to Ms Keane. "It says that what you are requesting is impossible as the teaching methods and standards are set by law."

"But this is a private school, and—"

"I know. But we cannot afford to deviate from state standards," said Dr Crowley.

"But you must understand, with the Powerpuff Girls as my students, and with them particularly brighter than any other students, you cannot apply one teaching standard! They might be the same age, but the Puffs are far more advanced than their classmates. Blossom's intelligence is even, as they say, on a high school level!"

"We know. I know that, you know that. The Powerpuff Girls are a problem because of their advanced intelligence. Bubbles is not so much of a problem, as she's advanced, but only a bit, but Blossom! Well, as you said, she could be studying High School, and academically, she would be right at home. But their maturity level is only that of first graders or in Blossom's case, perhaps only a little older. They cannot be advanced, since they are just little kids, and they will not fit in with teen-agers, or for that matter, even third graders."

Ms Keane was deflated. "It's just that they could be learning so much more than what I'm offering them. They could be so much smarter than they are now. But I can't teach them more since their classmates cannot keep up if I do so!"

"That's why you're advocating separate classrooms for the three only? Look Ms Keane, school is not only for teaching kids academically. It also teaches them how to interact with their peers, and how to socialize. They need it, since with their powers, they are already a class apart," he reasoned with an understanding voice.

"I know."

"As for the lesson and such, I'm sorry, but even if I wanted to, I can't let you. It's the superintendent's decision. Not mine," he said.

The bell rang. Recess was over.

"Well, thank you for sending my recommendations to the superintendent," she said.

"You're welcome. And if it's any comfort, I gave my approval and recommended it's adoption by this school," the principal sighed. "I only repeated what they told me."

"Thanks," she smiled, before walking back to her classroom.

* * *

_**39\. Ms Keane and Her Problems** _

…

To say that she was disappointed was an understatement. She really was sure that the superintendent would not deny her request. Why shouldn't he? After all, wasn't she right?

As she drove her car from the elementary school towards her home, she looked at the time. 3:30 p.m. She had watched as the kids walked or ran out of her classroom into the grounds, and either rode the school bus, or were picked up by their parents. Except for the Powerpuff Girls. They flew.

The Powerpuff Girls…

She loved them. She felt that they were the daughters she never had. She felt very motherly when interacting with them. Maybe it was the fact that the girls never had a mother. A teacher, they say, was a second mother. It was never more true than in the case of the Powerpuff Girls. She could not count all the instances when she taught them things that only a female could, and which the Professor, by virtue of being a man, could not. She giggled. The girls, more often than not, would come to her for advice that they knew the Professor could not give.

Professor Utonium…

She mused. She had dated him once. It was awkward. Extremely awkward. Still, their relationship may have progressed if it were not for his aversion for cats. Really, the Professor was a barbarian for hating cats! Just because he had previous experience with being mind-controlled by a cat did not give him the excuse to hate all cats! She cannot love someone who does not like cats!

Still, the fact that any chance of any romantic relationship between the Professor and her was nil did not mean that they did not remain friends. They remained close, and they collaborated on something close to both their hearts—raising the Powerpuff Girls. Professor Utonium many times had been invited to parent teacher conferences—whether to receive praise for Blossom's achievements, whether to revel in Bubbles' artistic skill, or to tell the Professor her academic weaknesses, or to tell the Professor any trouble that Buttercup had gotten into.

She arrived. She parked her car, went to her mailbox, got her mail, and entered her home. Her house was a two-storey house that was better suited to a family of six than to someone who lives by herself like Ms Keane. But she really did not like living in a rented apartment. She wanted to live in a house like the one she grew up with, so when she got an opportunity to get a big house that seemed to be within her means, she got it.

And it was  _big._  Located at the very edge of the suburbs, it had two storeys, not including the attic and the basement. The first floor had a big kitchen with the most modern appliances, and the living room had a big TV and sound system in front of a long couch and two smaller couches besides it. There was a rich Persian carpet on the floor, and a center table with a decorative ashtray (that she never uses except to put candy), and an embroidered tablecloth. There was an upright piano against the wall on the other side. Between the kitchen and the living room was the dining room, with a big wooden table, with six chairs around it, and fruit (apples, oranges, and grapes) in the middle.

She was proud of her house, as she sat on the couch, and began checking her mail. They were mostly bills. Her utility bills were low, and whatever amount she had to pay was mostly due to the fixed monthly minimum rather than to her usage. It was expected.

The one that concerned her the most was the monthly mortgage payments on her house. She opened it, and read the Statement of Account.

 _Four More Years, Sandy,_  she said to herself. Four more years to fully pay off her house, her castle in the suburbs. The monthly amount she had to deposit in the local bank was painful, but affordable. After all, she was working as one of the highest paid teachers in Pokey Oakes Elementary School, a private school, despite teaching only one section.

It was her work when she worked at kindergarten that led to her current job. She did an admirable job being teacher to the Powerpuff Girls, making sure their status as superheroes, and the fact that they were the most powerful kids in the world, did not affect their treatment by the school, and by their classmates. Thus, they were able to be and were able to act like normal five-year-old students, except for the fact that they were brighter and more intelligent than the average kindergartener.

Other teachers in the elementary school were either too in awe of the Powerpuff Girls, or were too afraid of them, or too admiring of them, for them to be suitable teachers for the superheroes. So it was deemed suitable to hire Sandy Keane to continue teaching the Powerpuff Girls until more specialized teachers would be needed. As of that moment, Ms Keane's educational attainments were enough to qualify her to teach every subject in the first grade. And she would also, periodically, instruct other teachers on the art of teaching superheroes, especially in the higher grades.

That entailed a higher salary for Sandy as she was loathed to give up teaching kindergarten. The school had to make a really attractive offer for her to be enticed to teach first grade. An offer that enabled her to buy her dream home.

And to raise her credit card limit.

Which was causing her more headaches than her mortgage bills, or her utility bills. Those were predictable.

But as she looked at her credit card bill, her eyes bugged out at the amount she owed. Even the minimum payment shocked her. How did she owe so much?

Because she kept buying things. Cheap things. Small things. Like clothes worth a couple of dollars, bags that were affordable, a new carpet, and other things to furnish her new home. All of which, individually, were really cheap.

But add it all up, and it got out of hand.

 _Did I really spend that much?_   _I guess I did._

She really should not have bought the Persian carpet, or the new Kinkaid painting. Or even the piano. But she could not resist! After, she could afford it with her new salary, right? And she could not bear to have her home look so bare!

_So I did overspend. Guess I'll have to tighten the belt a little bit._

* * *

_**40\. Unexpected Visitors** _

She was pondering on how she's gonna budget her monthly earnings when she heard her doorbell ring.

She walked and opened her front door. "Yes?"

There was no one there.

"Funny. I swore someone rang the doorbell. Pranksters, I guess."

She closed her door, and got the shock of her life.

" _Hello, Ms Keane._ "

The one who spoke was a child, no older than six. He has long red hair, under a red cap, with red shirt that was a bit torn at the edges, giving him the appearance of a street child, but it was surprisingly clean. He had black pants. His eyes had an unnatural blood red color.

With him were two other boys. On his left was a blond boy at the same age. He had the same clothes as the first boy, but he had a dark blue shirt instead of red. His eyes were a deep blue.

On the right was a boy with spiked black hair and green eyes. He also had the same tattered clothes as the other two, but his shirt was dark green.

But it was not the fact of their appearance that shocked her.

It was the fact that they were eye level with her.

Because they were floating.

She recognized them.

They were the Rowdyruff Boys.

She had seen them from TV reports and newspapers. And she saw them when they were last seen, at school, right after they were discovered to have done the tricks that Buttercup was accused of.

She looked at them.

And despite the fact that she knew them to be evil, that they were very powerful and could snap her neck in an instant, she could not help but think one thing.

They were ADORABLE.

They were cute. They might be villains, but they were also six-year-old kids. And they  _looked_  like six-year-old kids. Looking at them reminded her of the Powerpuff Girls. She wanted to go hug them, and mother them, and change their tattered clothes, to mother them, to make them feel at home…

Tattered clothes… She really wanted to go to a trip to the tailors' and order new clothes for them.

She felt sorry for them, just by their appearance.

 _Wait_ , she should not feel sorry for them. They were  _evil_! Recently, they destroyed school property and framed Buttercup!

She repressed any motherly feelings and looked at them, determined not to betray her thoughts. She was going to show them that she was the teacher of the mighty Powerpuff Girls.

"Don't you know it's not polite to come in without being invited?" she asked a bit sternly.

"We're evil. We don't do polite," the redheaded one replied. "And we don't want to stay outside longer than we have to. Somebody might see us, and we don't want that."

She agreed with that. Anyone seeing the Rowdyruff Boys would be freaked out, so it made sense for them to quickly enter as soon as the door was opened.

"So, you are?" she began. She might know them as the Rowdyruff Boys, but she didn't know their names.

"I'm Brick!"

"Boomer."

"And I'm Butch."

"And we're the Rowdyruff Boys!" they said in unison.

"Yes, I've heard of you!"

"We're the most evil villains in history!" Brick boasted.

"Yeah! We kicked butts! We kicked those Powerpuffs to the ground!" Butch boasted.

"Yeah, we kicked butts!" Boomer repeated, earning him a hit from Butch. "Ow"

"Say your own lines," the green eyes ruff snapped.

"So what can I do for you?" asked Ms Keane. Even if she was not showing it, she was a bit scared. What do they want from her? Would they rob her? Beat her up? Use her against the Powerpuff Girls? She was absolutely helpless against the Rowdyruff Boys.

"We want something," said Brick.

"Are you going to rob me?" Ms Keane asked. There was no point in beating around the bush.

"No," Brick, who was obviously the leader, said.

They're not going to rob her? That gave her a sigh of relief. So what do they want?

"We want you to teach us."

She blinked. What?

"Come again?" asked the teacher.

"Teach us."

Was she hearing things? The biggest hoodlums in town were asking her to teach them. It was not like the situation where the truant officer made the Gang Green Gang go to her school in kindergarten. Seriously, who thought that was a good idea, especially at their ages? But these three boys were the same age as the Powerpuff Girls. Would it be a good idea to put them in the same classroom as the Powerpuff Girls?

It doesn't matter. She's a teacher. Her first responsibility was to educate children. Especially children who wanted to be taught.

Like the Rowdyruff Boys.

Villains or not.

She would bring the boys to school and teach them.

"Of course, boys. I'll have you enrolled in Pokey Oakes Elementary School, or at Townsville Public—"

"Sorry, Ms Keane. We ain't going to school."

"Huh? But you wanted me to teach you. And I can teach you at school!"

"No. We want you to teach us. Personally. Like a tutor," explained the redhead.

They wanted her to tutor them?

"Explain," Ms Keane demanded.

"We don't wanna go to school. And nobody could force us to," said Brick. "We hate school. But if there's one thing right done by school, it's learning. The Powerpuff Girls are smart, and it's because of you, Ms Keane, right?"

Ms Keane beamed with pride. Coming from the enemies of the Powerpuff Girls, it was a great compliment.

"Well, I'm not the only one responsible for that," she said. "But yes, I could say that I am a small part of the reason why they are smart and responsible."

"I saw it when we went to your school. I was listening to your lessons. You're really smart, and I want you teach me, and my brothers," the red eyed leader explained. "We want you to teach us, and teach us only, not with anybody else. You could teach in school if you want, but you must also teach us outside school."

* * *

_**41\. A Bitter Disappointment** _

Ms Keane looked at them. She looked at Brick's red eyes, and she could see that he was desperate to learn. She looked at Boomer, and there was the curiosity and the eagerness of a six-year-old child. Butch was mostly bored, though he tried to look tough.

Should she do it?

Unfortunately, she can't. She was already overworked. She really can't spare the time. She had too much to worry about. Bills, bills, bills. And of course, there was the pressure of teaching elementary students, especially the Powerpuff Girls. And she can't even think about the ethics of teaching villains privately. She would be accused of coddling criminals!

No, she can't do it.  _It's not right_! She would be helping the enemy! She would be aiding evil! The boys were evil!

"I'm very flattered that you came to me," Ms Keane began, trying to soften the blow. "I want to teach you. I want to educate you, don't get me wrong. But I can't."

Brick suddenly looked at her as if he could not believe what he was hearing.

"You can't?" he exclaimed, in a dangerous tone.

Ms Keane began to doubt her safety.

"Not unless you can pay me," she began, looking for a plausible reason to refuse. "You see, being a tutor is a full time job, and I'm a busy woman. I've got so many things to do, and so many bills to pay. I am sorry."

"So its money you want?" Brick replied, confidence returning to his tone. "We could easily get you money."

_Oh right. They could easily get money._

This was bad. She can't condone them stealing just so they can pay her to teach them! It would be wrong! She would be giving encouragement to theft and robbery!

"I'm sorry, but I won't accept stolen money, and yes, I know that all your money was stolen. So unless you can tell me that you have a job, or that there's someone with a job who's willing to pay me, then I can't accept anything from you," said Ms Keane.

"What?" he said, his tone rising. "You don't think we can get money without stealing?"

He was shaking, and it was clear that she had angered and insulted Brick by her words. But she can't take it back now. She had to make a stand. She can't teach them privately for free! If they want to learn, they must go to school. Or pay her with honest money.

"Listen, school's not that bad," she began to argue. "If you want, I promise you I'll get you enrolled in Pokey Oakes Elementary School, and you'll be classmates with the Powerpuff Girls. I'm sure all the kids would like to be friends with you, and—"

Remarkably, the leader calmed down. "Thanks, but no thanks. One more thing."

"Yes?" she asked.

"Don't tell anyone about this. We'll go now."

At that, the three ruffs left as suddenly as they appeared.

* * *

Ms Keane blinked. Was she dreaming? Was this real? Did the Rowdyruff Boys just ask her to be their private tutor? The same Rowdyruff Boys who were the terror of Townsville, and who recently destroyed school property?

And she was right to refuse! She can't afford to do so! She's up on her neck with bills! She needed to look for a second job. And they were evil! What if this was some kind of trick to get back at the Powerpuff Girls? She would never forgive herself if she was unwittingly made part of a plot to defeat the city's heroines.

Still, there was a part of her that wanted to accept their offer. She looked at them, and she felt so sorry for them. Sure, they were villains, and sure, they were the most powerful boys in the world, and sure, they once defeated the Powerpuff Girls, but she looked at them, and she can't help but feel pity. They looked like street children, like ragamuffins. Their clothes were little better than rags. They were the girls' counterparts, but while the girls were clean, polite, and were groomed for success, the boys were a bit rude, and were not groomed at all, period. The only thing in their favor was that they were surprisingly clean.

Through it all, she could see the little boys in them. She looked into their eyes, and they were a bit innocent. Not innocent as if they did not do wrong—no, they had an innocence about them, a childish innocence.

And they wanted to learn. What child would willingly ask his teacher to teach them? Sure, they hated school, but what child did not express similar sentiments? Only this time, the Ruffs probably had no guardian who can tell them to go to school. It was very first time that a child, outside of a school setting, that was not her relative, directly asked her to teach them! It really melted her heart, and she really wanted to be their tutor.

But she cannot.

Still, that encounter made her curious. She got her phone, and dialed a number.

"Hello, Sara? It's Sandy Keane. I just want to ask you about a certain group of villains. The Rowdyruff Boys. Could you tell me about them? Okay, please send it. Thanks."

* * *

…

_The next day, October 5, Tuesday…_

Ms Keane looked at the file that Ms Bellum sent to her email. She had it printed, and took it to school. It was recess, and she was looking at it. Most of the things she read she already knew, yet the impression that the Rowdyruffs gave was very different from the vibes she was getting reading the report. It's as if they were two different people. The report seemed to make the Rowdyruffs absolute monsters. And she supposed, they were monsters with how they acted. Yet she looked at their cute little forms, their precious little eyes, and she knew that they really couldn't be monsters. She wanted to know more.

"Ms Keane? You called for us?"

It was Blossom.

She put the paper down, and saw the three Powerpuffs floating in front of her. Comparing them with how the boys looked, they really  _were_  counterparts to the Rowdyruffs!

"Yes Ms Keane?" asked Bubbles politely.

"Well girls, I have the official result of the school investigation. Now we officially know what really happened. Congratulations, Buttercup, you're innocent. It was the Rowdyruff Boys who were responsible!"

"I know," Buttercup muttered.

"We knew that it wasn't Buttercup," Bubbles added.

"And we're happy that the truth came out," said Blossom.

"Now girls, just to wrap things up, I want ask you a question."

"Yes Ms Keane?"

"Tell me about the Rowdyruff Boys."

"Well, they're boys. What's there to tell?" Buttercup retorted.

"Yeah. They're disgusting, and gross!" Bubbles added.

Typical reactions. It might as well have been any other six-year-old girl talking about any other six-year-old boy.

"Not to mention dumb and stupid!" Blossom said.

"Now be nice girls," Ms Keane admonished. "You shouldn't really be talking about other people like that. Even if they are your enemies!"

"But they really are stupid!" Blossom insisted. "Tell them, Bubbles."

"Yeah. They can't even spell dumb. Brick spelled it d-u-m! Can you imagine? And he's supposed to be the smartest among them!" Bubbles affirmed.

"Yeah. And they acted like idiots when they were riding that boat, plane, and tank!" Buttercup added. "It was fun, but they were stupid."

"How about as enemies?" asked Ms Keane.

"They were… not bad," Buttercup said, with a  _lot_  of hesitation.

"They were tough. Tougher than any other enemy!" Bubbles added.

"And they were the only ones who actually beat us in a fight!" Blossom said, though it was in a low tone. "But we showed them! We figured out their weakness, and now, they are no more of a threat than Mojo Jojo!"

"Yeah, they might be tough, but they're silly," Bubbles agreed.

"So you think that they're still a major threat?" asked Ms Keane.

"Well, we can beat them," Blossom began. "But—"

" _Don't say it! Don't say it_!" Buttercup shouted.

"But they can beat us too," the leader finished, "but we can handle them. But yeah, they're a threat, but not much of a threat. We will beat them when it matters, and that's all there is to it!"

"So you think that there's a chance that they could change?" the teacher asked.

"Change? What do you mean?" asked Bubbles.

"Well, could they turn away from evil?" the blue-eyed adult asked.

"The Rowdyruff Boys? They were born evil!" Bubbles stated.

"Yeah. They were made to destroy us! And they won't stop!" Buttercup added.

"They cannot change. They're too stupid to change!" the leader agreed.

The bell rang.

"Well thank you, girls," said Ms Keane. She was disappointed with her questioning. She expected a more mature response, but their response was that of six-year-old children. Typical. But she hoped that she might learn more. Still, it was informative. The boys were created evil. Perhaps they could change.

But now she understood why they came to her.

If it was true that they didn't even know how to spell the word "dumb", then they really needed help. Though if she should help them was another matter entirely. Would she be helping them defeat the Powerpuff Girls if she helped them learn?

But it was all idle speculation. She could not, even if she would want to, afford to teach them for free.

* * *

_**42\. The Nature of Evil** _

…

After school, she went shopping for a present for her mother. It was for her 73rd birthday. It took her awhile to find what she was looking for—a cookbook that her mother always wanted.

She had it wrapped, and deposited it in the front seat of her car. It was going to be a long drive to her parents' house in Farmsville.

It was seven in the evening as she drove past Townsville Library, when something caught her eye.

Three streaks of light landed in front of the building, with a middle aged man, whom she recognized as the manager of the library, waiting for them. It was the Powerpuff Girls. She stopped the vehicle and yelled.

"GIRLS!"

"Ms Keane!" yelled Blossom, waiving back. The other two girls waved too.

The teacher waved back, before resuming her drive. She knew what they were doing. They were still trying to catch a glimpse of the Ghost of Townsville Library. It was something that they were trying to do since they saw them last August. She wished the girls good luck. They needed it. The ghosts seemed determined not to be seen ever since that first encounter. And she hoped that they would not find them. It could end up like that first encounter—with the girls being hit in the head, and being dragged out unconscious.

She could not believe it at first. The mighty Powerpuff Girls laid low by inexistent ghosts? Well, the ghosts certainly existed! All the witnesses could not have been lying. And they were powerful.

* * *

Her mind wandered more as she drove out of the city into the countryside. She waxed nostalgic as memories of her childhood were revived.

She was a farm girl. Her parents and grandparents were farmers. She was the first of her family to actually venture into the city to pursue her own career. But that does not mean she lost her love of the land. On the contrary, the more time she spent on the city, the more she loved the countryside, the farm, and the rural life. If only she could teach and live in the country. But she could not live with her parents and keep her pride. And there's no other vacant lot in Farmville that would still make her live near enough to her work in the city.

Her new house at the edge of Townsville and at the border of Farmsville was the closest she could get to her dream. She just needed to look on one side of the window of her new house and see rows and rows of farmland, and look at the other side and see the large skyscrapers of Townsville. That was one reason she bought the land and the house even at that price when she had the money.

She smiled as she drove at full speed on the highway, always looking for the speck of white light that would… there it was! It was two story wooden frame-house. Built in the 19th century, it was in her family for more than a hundred years. She loved the place. It was her family home. The home she grew up on. The home of her fondest memories. She and her younger brother may have gone to school in the nearest city, Townsville, but the farm was still, home.

* * *

…

"Happy Birthday, Mom!" she greeted, giving her grey haired, grey eyed mother her gift as she entered the farmhouse.

"Thank you Sandy," she said, kissing her daughter on the cheeks.

She then hugged her Dad, who was about 75 years old, with white hair and blue eyes.

* * *

…

The celebration was happy, and it was a joy for the teacher to see her parents all smiles. Her younger brother and her nephew and niece were there too to liven up her day.

They all were in the living room, having already finished eating the food, sitting on couches around a table with various presents on the center table, in front of the warm fireplace. All the other guests have left, so it was only Sandy, her parents, her little brother, his wife, and their two little children, that were there.

"Hey Aunt Sandy, is it true that you teach the Powerpuff Girls?" a little girl, about seven years old, asked. She had brown hair, and big brown eyes, in a pink dress.

She looked at her adorable niece, and said, "Yes Mary. I teach the Powerpuff Girls."

"Wow, it's so cool having my aunt as the Powerpuff Teacher!" said Mary's brother, a boy about eight years old, with blond hair and green eyes. "So how are they?"

"Oh they're just regular kids who happened to have superpowers, Tom," she said, smiling.  _And a lot smarter than kids their age too._

"And not just that, but your aunt also taught them last year in kindergarten! So a lot of what they know was because of her. Isn't that right, Sandy?" a man, with black hair and blue eyes, about ten years younger than her, said.

She looked at her younger brother. "Yes, Bill, though not all. A lot was taught to them by their Professor," she retorted.

"Speaking of the Professor, it is true, Sandy, that you two dated?" asked Sandy's blonde and green-eyed sister-in-law.

"Yes, Charlotte, but that's over," said Sandy, not wishing to revisit the topic, said. Before the 39-year-old Charlotte could say anything else, the teacher turned to her parents, and asked a question that was bugging her mind. "Mom, I have a question. Are there some people who are born evil?"

"Why do you ask, Sandy?"

"Well, if that person was born evil, is there any chance that he could change and become good?"

"Well, if he's born evil, I suppose he cannot change. Satan, for example, is born evil, and could never change," her Dad, who doubled as a minister, opined.

She clenched her cup. "Well, what if that thing who is supposed to be born evil was just a child right now? Would there be a good chance that someone could change him for the better?"

"Is he human?" asked Bill.

"Yes. But he was created to do evil."

"A human cannot be created good or evil," her father explained. "We all have free will. However, our choices could be conditioned by our environment, or by our upbringing. Our hypothetical evil boy, for example, could be considered born evil because his creator simply told them to be evil the moment they were born, or his thoughts dominated their minds so much that they don't have a choice."

"But could they be redeemed?" she asked.

"Well, I suppose they could. But they must be redeemed while they are young. While young, they are suggestible, and are more accepting of what people tell them. And it's better to start young to remove any evil influence from their lives. Why do you ask?"

"I know why! It's the Rowdyruff Boys!" Tom, the eight year old nephew, exclaimed. "They were created by an evil father, Mojo Jojo, and brought back by the devil himself!"

"How do you know that?" asked her aunt.

"Everyone knows that," he said innocently.

"If it's the Rowdyruffs you're talking about, then that's a good example. People consider them born evil, but they were evil not because of what they are, but because of what they do, and what their so-called parents told them to do," her father added. "They are just little boys who do not know better. Who told them that what they are doing was wrong? Nobody is irredeemable."

"Thank you," she said. "Nobody is irredeemable."

"Except this house! The mortgage can go to hell," her mother spoke.

* * *

_**43\. Mortgage Problems** _

Both Bill and Sandy looked at her, eyes wide.

"Mom? What mortgage?" asked Bill, his voice surprised by the news.

"Martha!" her father said, in a stern voice.

"Uh, it's nothing," Mrs. Keane said, with a hesitating voice. It was clear that she said something she shouldn't say.

"Mom? Dad? What's happening?" Bill asked, in a voice that said that he wasn't taking any bullsh!t from his parents. "Please tell us."

"Thomas Keane, Mary Kay Keane, go upstairs! Now!" Charlotte Keane, Bill's wife, ordered, and the two children ran upstairs with their toys.

"Tell them, Will," Martha said to her husband.

Sandy looked at her father, William "Will" Keane Sr., as he sighed. It really was serious then. She hoped that it wasn't as bad as they were making it to be.

"I always told you to never lie," her father began, with a wry smile. "We applied for a loan in Citiesville Bank. Basically, the new tractor and the new barn was bought with that money. We were going to pay for it after the harvest had been sold. Well, a monster's tail flying tail from Townsville flew and destroyed a lot of the crops last month. And the insurance had just expired, and we were looking for a new one. It happened during the period between insurances, so to speak."

Ms Keane really needed to have a talk with the Powerpuff Girls. They needed to be more careful on how they fight monsters. It could result in tragedies.

"And then the price of grain collapsed," Martha finished. "We have no way to pay the loan. And the bank will foreclose. We will… we will lose the farm."

"Dad…" Bill Keane began.

Sandy looked at her brother, William "Bill" Keane Jr as he struggled to speak.

"Dad, Mom," he finally said, "how long till it forecloses. How much?"

"One month to this day. And a hundred thousand dollars."

They were silent. They were not rich. They could not afford to pay the debt. What could she do? Maybe she should sell some of her expensive purchases? Maybe even sell her dream house? It was a sacrifice, but saving their parents' house was the priority. She could always move in with them again, since she could commute to her work in Townsville.

It was a bitter blow, but she made that decision right there and then. She would have to say goodbye to her home.

"Where would we get…" Bill began. Sandy knew that his brother wasn't in the best financial shape either. He had just paid off the mortgage of his own house in the suburbs, his wife was a homemaker, and his job, though high-paying, wouldn't pay enough in one month to pay off the mortgage on the farm. "Oh my God! I don't want to lose this farm! I grew up here! We can't let the bank take it!"

…

* * *

Ms Keane was sad as she drove home. What was supposed to be a happy occasion turned grim. They were going to lose her childhood home. Both she and her brother did not want it to happen. But what can they do? The harvest was a bust. Both she and his brother don't have the money to pay it off. They could take a loan. But she was already up in debt on her new home and her credit card bills. She groaned. How was she going to sell a house that's still mortgaged? The purchaser would have to pay a price that would pay off her debt, and enough left over to pay her parents' debt.

As she approached her home, midway between the city and the farm, she remembered she forgot to buy something.  _Soap_! Of all things to forget! Luckily, she knew a convenience store that was still open at that hour. It was 9:45 p.m., according to the car watch, as she drove into the city. She went to the nearest convenience store, a  _7-Eleven and_  purchased soap and other things that she needed as fast as she could.

As she was driving home, she drove past the library. It was 10:00 p.m., and she saw the Powerpuff Girls step out of the front door of the library. She immediately stopped and opened her window, and tried to shout, but before she could even open her mouth, three streaks of light flew off into the distance.

She was a second too late. Disappointed, she was about to close her window, but…

"Step out of the car, Lady!"

She turned her head, and there was a masked man, with his arm sticking inside the open window, holding a .45 handgun pointed to her face. His other hand quickly opened the door from the inside.

"I SAID, GET OUT!" he shouted, and a frightened Ms Keane could only comply.

"Please don't hurt me," she said as she stood up and was forced to face her car. A companion of the armed masked man grabbed her purse and began inspecting it as the first masked man grabbed her hands, pulled it behind her, and she felt the cold steel of handcuffs on her wrists.

She was thoroughly frightened.

* * *

_**44\. Butch's Solutions** _

…

_Earlier in the night…_

Butch was happy. It had been a long time since his craving for violence was satisfied. Sure, it was a tiny use of violence, but it was enough. The setting for the violence was a simple pizza robbery. They had perfected  _their_  way of doing it. They would hang out outside the pizza place. Sooner or later, someone would order, and they would swipe the pizza from the delivery guy. Or if there would be no delivery, they would order pizza from the payphone, and then do the swipe.

Another idea of Butch! Use the payphone! In a phone booth! He saw it in the comics. It's the place where Clark Kent changes into his stupid costume to Superman. At first, he thought it was just a place to change clothes, but he later learned from other panels in comics that people really do make calls from there. And he learned too what a telephone was. Good thing the pizza place displayed their phone number on the window.

Even Brick didn't know it! Sometimes, reading comics was more useful than reading the dumb encyclopedias and reference books Brick likes to read so much! Once again, Butch came to his leader's rescue! Oh yeah, he's the  _best_  leader assistant ever!

And so they stole the food as it was being delivered. And they stole not only pizza, but a bottle of soda and some plastic cups too.

And he got the pleasure of punching the delivery guy, knocking out his teeth in the process and causing him to fall asleep! It was fun, and it made him giddy and happy. It was such a pleasure connecting even his very weak punch to the man's jaw.

 _Violence! Violence! Violence_! Honestly, it was the best thing in the world.

It was a happy moment, followed by a happy meal, as he and his brothers settled in their shack. It was early, about five in the afternoon, since they wanted to go to the library as soon as possible.

Nothing could spoil the mood, until Brick showed his disappointment at the events of the previous day.

"This sucks," the leader said as the three boys ate their dinner. "I didn't think she would refuse us."

Butch on the other hand was happy that Ms Keane refused them! After all, he really wasn't crazy about being lectured by an adult. Sure, Butch, from watching her in the classroom, and from the way she talked, liked her, even admired her. But that does not mean that he would be okay with what Brick was doing. He really had to suppress his expressions of joy when the teacher said that they should pay her, and that she would not accept stolen money.

"Yeah. She seemed so nice," Boomer said as he took a bite out of his pizza.

"Why don't you just threaten her?" asked Butch. It was really so obvious. If Brick really wanted to the teacher to do what he wanted, he should have demanded it as his right. And if she refused? Well, Butch would show her what happens to anyone that defied the Rowdyruff Boys! They don't need their consent! They take what they like!

Brick seemed to have forgotten that lesson. Or he had gotten soft.

"Idiot! Could you not stop and think for a while, Butch?" the eldest brother said, glaring at his brother before hitting him in the head.

"Why? She'll do what you tell her to. What's wrong with that?" Butch asked, rubbing the part of his head hit by his big brother. Really, what was wrong with using threats? Brick was the thick one, not he.

"So we do that. We say we kill her if she doesn't. So what will happen? She will teach us for the night," the Rowdyruff leader began.

"And so, you get it!" Butch said, feeling smart. He was glad Brick was coming to his way of thinking.

"But then what? After we go to sleep, she would run to the Powerpuff Girls, and it would be all over!" he finished.

Oh yeah. That would present a problem. But why worry? They would beat up the girls if they dared showed their ugly faces. But Brick was in his crazy phase, the phase where he thinks that girls were better than them. So they had to avoid fighting the sissies. And look like cowards. He should knock some sense into his brother.

"So what do we do now?" asked Boomer.

"What can we do? I don't know!" Brick rejoined as he drank his soda. "How can we get some money and not have her think that we stole it? Should we get a job?"

Butch skin crawled at the very suggestion. Would he be like those idiots behind the hot dog stands or those selling popcorn? The  _horror_!

He looked at his brother. "Please Brick, don't even joke about getting a job!"

"Who says we will get a job?" Brick retorted. "I'd rather die than serve at the command of someone else for a few bucks a month."

"Well, she also said that we could get someone who would pay her for us," his youngest brother said before he drank his soda.

"But who would be willing to pay for our education?" the redhead wondered as he bit another pizza.

Once again, the middle brother will have to rescue them! Where would Boomer and Brick be without Butch? His brothers were wimps. They were the Rowdyruff Boys! They don't ask! They take. Although he really shouldn't help them since he didn't want to be taught by a teacher. "We should just get some rich schmuck and threaten him to pay Ms Keane."

There! Simple. Direct. Effective. The Rowdyruff Way. Brick should thank him for that. He was that nice of a brother.

"And what would happen the moment we turn our backs? He'll tell her what we did, and then what?" the redhead snapped.

Oh yeah. We can't have teacher learn that they threatened someone to pay her. So they needed to get someone to pay her. But his leader was right. No one in their right mind would pay her to teach them.

If only Ms Keane would give in. Perhaps they should give her something ladies like? Like jewelry. Or diamonds. Lois Lane seemed to like diamonds. Clark Kent seemed fond of it. And thieves like to steal it too. Peter Parker, a.k.a. Spiderman, also likes to give diamonds to Mary Jane. Diamonds. Would Ms Keane like diamonds? But then again, she might think that they would steal the diamonds if they offered to give it to her.

* * *

_**45\. Diamonds are Forever** _

It's not like diamonds grow out of trees. It's not as if they can just create diamonds out of nothing. Or in Superman's case, out of coal.

Wait!  _Superman made diamonds out of coal_! Wasn't coal cheap? He remembered having coal near the fireplace of Ms Keane. They could make diamonds out of coal in front of teacher. That would tell her that they didn't steal anything.

But can they make diamonds into coal? Well, Superman can. Can they? Butch reflected. Weren't they—the Rowdyruff Boys, basically Superman? Flight, super strength, super speed, laser eyes, x ray vision, super hearing! All powers of Superman, and all powers that they, the Rowdyruff Boys, have. So it stands to reason that they could also turn coal into diamonds! And as he recalled, all that Supes did was to put coal into his hands, crush it in his fists, and there were diamonds!

If they could do it, then surely, Ms Keane would be happy. All women like diamonds, right? Although why they liked it he does not know. It's just a rock that looked like a glass! Why would anyone want to own a diamond? They're useless bling, as his leader once told him. Who needs diamonds? But for some reason, females like them. Maybe because they are dumb. Bet the Powerpuff Sissies would love diamonds because they are stupid!

He should tell Brick. But should he? Butch was so sure that it would work that by telling his brother, he would be in effect, setting themselves up to be taught by Teacher Keane. Then he would be forced to listen to boring lectures, and such. They might not be actually going to school, but they might as well be.

He should keep this a secret. It's for their own good. Butch doesn't want to be a student. So why should he do anything?

He looked at his leader. His eyes and face were bitter. They were sad. They were not the happy confident eyes of the leader he knew.

It bugged him more than it should. He really wanted to keep this to himself. But seeing his leader like that…

Nevermind. He's going to make the ultimate sacrifice to help his brother. For Brick. He's hoping that his leader would be grateful for what he's about to do.

"Hey, maybe we can make diamonds, and give it to Ms Keane," said Butch. "We could make coal into diamonds in front of her, and then she could not say that we stole it."

Both brothers looked at him as if he was crazy.

"I think you're crazy," Brick snapped. "So explain yourself."

"Well Superman could turn coal into diamonds. Since we have all his powers, why can't we do that too?" he said.

"We can do that? Cool!" Boomer explained.

"We don't know that we could do that," said the redhead. "Show me how."

"I really don't know how we do it. How 'bout reading the comics where Supes did turn coal into diamonds?"

* * *

…

It was six in the evening, and the three ruffs were back in the library.

"So?" Brick asked, looking at Butch.

"Oh yeah. Give me a minute. I gotta find that issue," Butch said, trying to remember what comic did he actually read and see Superman turn coal into diamonds. He began to quickly scan comic after comic trying to find the elusive scene.

"C'mon! We don't have all day!" Brick complained as he watched Butch quickly turn page after page of Superman comic books.

_C'mon! C'mon! Where are you! I know I've see it here somewhere. Where are you, where… There you are!_

There it was. Superman got a piece of coal, gripped it on his hand, and it turned into a diamond. It was in Action # 115, made in 1947.

"Here it is, Brick!" he said in triumph.

"So that's the trick you're talking about," said his leader, eyeing the scene. "But why? How?"

"What do you mean?" asked Butch.

He gave back the comic book, and looked around. He went to a set of books.  _Encyclopedia Americana_ , Butch read, letter D. He floated over and saw that he was reading an article about diamonds.

"So that's why that trick works. If you apply enough heat and pressure on a lump of coal, it would make it a diamond. See, both coal and diamonds are made from carbon. And intense heat and pressure would be needed to turn it into diamonds. It also says here that diamonds are really valuable. So, where do we get coal?"

"Ms Keane has a bucketful of them next to her fireplace," Butch said.

"Well then, we better go and make another visit. Perhaps this will change her mind," he said, a small smirk forming on his face.

There was a noise. It was the front door. Brick turned to the direction of the front door, and his faced became white as he quickly turned off the lights. "Quick, fix your mess. It's those sissies."

Butch turned on his x-ray vision and he saw the girls. He quickly put back the comic books back in the shelves, before he and his brothers exited the place in a hurry.

The three boys quietly flew across town and went to the Townsville suburbs. They landed in a particular house at the very edge of the said suburbs, just besides Farmsville. It was the house of the teacher.

Butch swallowed. This would be it. He was half hoping that their little experiment would fail, so they won't have to be taught by Ms Keane. But he also knew that he wanted his leader to succeed and to have whatever it was Brick really wanted from all of this. Brick was his leader, his elder brother, and he would follow him to the death and beyond. After all, what was being tutored compared to the tortures of hell?

Besides, he already liked Ms Keane. If he was going to be under any teacher, he already knew that he would choose to be under Ms Keane.

He looked around, and Brick did too. They did not want anyone spotting them. Satisfied that no one's snooping about, Brick quickly went and pressed the doorbell.

Butch tingled in anticipation as he heard the sound of the bell. He's got goose bumps. He was really nervous. This was it. They would be students in all but name. He was dreading it. But he cannot refuse this to his leader.

He looked at the door, and waited.

And nothing happened.

"Is she home?" Boomer asked.

Brick looked at house, concentrating. "She's not home," he answered, "Use your x-ray and see for yourself."

Butch did just that, and the only thing living thing he saw was an orange cat.

"So what do we do?" asked Boomer. "Will we wait for her?"

"No. I won't waste my time," he snapped. "Tomorrow, we'll just follow her when she comes home from school."

That made sense. He really didn't want to do a stakeout.  _Stakeout._  It was another word he learned in the comic books, usually done by policemen. It would be boring just waiting for something to happen.

They left the house, and went back to their shack…

* * *

…

It was about ten in the evening…

"It's about time!" the green ruff exclaimed upon seeing three streaks of light fly from the library.

The three were standing on the roof of a nearby building for about ten minutes, waiting for the three girls to leave the place where they would spend the night. Butch looked forward to lying on the soft couch. It was so nice and made sleeping much more relaxing.

"Hey, isn't that the teacher?" asked his blonde brother.

He looked at his brother, and looked at where he was pointing. Despite the darkness, he could see it clearly. There, in front of the library, was Ms Keane. Why was she standing outside, facing her car, with her hands behind her? And what were those two men doing? Were they dating her? But they were so rough and seemed to be doing something bad. Something evil. Not that Butch would disapprove. He was evil after all. But something was off. He didn't like what was happening.

"They're mugging her," Brick said, in a quiet and dangerous voice.

"That's bad, right?" asked Boomer.

Of course it was. The middle brother remembered the instances where the word 'mugging' was used in the comic books. It was bad. Should they save her?

"Let's teach those goons a lesson. Never mess with our teacher."

"So what do we do? Beat them up?" asked the green ruff.

"More than that, Butch. Kill them. And leave no evidence."

That really put a grin on the green ruff's face. Finally, some real violence!

"Let's go, boys!" he said as he flew towards Ms Keane.

"Yeah. Let's save her!" Boomer said, his voice full of concern.

* * *

_**46\. Saving the Night** _

…

She hoped that they'd just take her stuff and leave her alone. But why cuff her? Were they planning to ra… Oh God! She prayed as she never had prayed before, as fear gripped her entire being. She felt hands frisking her. Those rough hands went to her neck, gently unclasping her necklace. She could see the other robber grabbing her things inside her car. Would they steal her car? Please, she needed that to go home! Her home was very far way!

"Hey, you're Sandy Keane, right?"

She turned her head as much as she could, and nodded.

"How much would the city pay to have their precious Powerpuff teacher back?" the other robber began to speculate.

_Oh Please no! Don't kidnap me! Don't hold me for ransom! Take my car! Take my money! But please leave me alone!_

"Leave our teacher alone."

Who was that? Was that? Brick? That can't be!

She looked at the source of the voice, and there, standing on the road, covered in shadows, were the three Rowdyruff Boys.

"Hey kid! Go home to your Mommy! It's way past your bedtime!" the robber behind Ms Keane shouted.

"We would, but we saw you pieces of trash harass this lady right here," Brick continued. "Let her go, give back what you took, and we won't kill you. Otherwise, say hello to Him when you get to Hell."

"Aw, little boy talks tough! Listen, go home. These are adults here! You're only kids. And you're not the Powerpuff Girls, so buzz off!"

"You had your chance," the redhead said, and he began floating.

"W-w-w-what? You're..." the other robber said, flabbergasted at the sight.

"Too late," he said quietly, his eyes glowing. "Don't say we didn't warn you."

A laser beam shot from his eyes, hitting the man behind the teacher.

"Butch?" the leader said.

"I'm on it!" he said, and Ms Keane heard a sickening snapping as she turned around. "Dead in one blow."

The other robber dropped what he was holding, and ran away. Boomer, however, blocked his escape route. "Where ya goin? You big bully you!"

The blond's eyes glowed, and laser shot out, going through his chest. He dropped to the ground, without any blood. The hole was cauterized by the laser.

Brick then got the two bodies, spun around, and threw it towards the sky. "That will clear the atmosphere and enter space," he said. "No body, and no sign of death. It would be as if he just disappeared from the face of the earth." He looked at the teacher. "You okay, Ms Keane?"

The teacher was horrified. He had just seen the Rowdyruff Boys kill two men. Two human beings. "Y-y-y-y-yyou killed them!" she sputtered.

"And? The Powerpuff Girls killed monsters on a regular basis. And they killed the three of us," said Brick. "And you worship them. As I was saying, you okay?"

"But… but they didn't know you'd die when they kissed you that first time," she tried to argue.

"Which is why they tried to kiss us again when we came back," Brick replied. "They were just trying to be nice right, and not trying to kill us by kissing us?"

Ms Keane was stunned with silence. She had no answer to that.

"Want to go home?" asked Boomer.

She nodded, unable to form words. The entire situation was overwhelming. She was dragged out of her car at gunpoint by two hoodlums, pushed her against it and cuffed, her things were stolen, then the most  _unlikely_  rescuers came, and they cold-bloodedly killed,  _murdered_ , the two. Was it murder? It was in the line of duty, but it's not their duty to save her! And they killed without any hesitation at all! It's as if it's no big deal!

She was gently placed inside her car, on the front seat, shotgun. The doors were closed, but the windows remained opened. She instinctively tried to close it, but when she tried, she was reminded of the fact that she was still cuffed. And she was too tongue tied to actually ask the boys to remove it. If they could! The keys were probably in space with the body. How long was she going to stay cuffed?

She could feel and see the car being lifted hundreds of feet into the air, and she could hear and feel the cold wind outside. She looked out the window, and was impressed. She looked back, and was mesmerized at the view of Townsville at night, all the bright lights of the skyscrapers silhouetted against the black background, blending seamlessly with the stars. She turned her head up. At that height, there was no light pollution, and the view of the stars was amazing. And looking down, she could not see anything but a few lights on. She guessed that the suburbs below were already asleep, in contrast to Townsville City center that never seems to rest.

In any other circumstance, it would have been one of the best nights of her life. She never had been this high above Townsville. She always wondered what it would be like to be a Powerpuff Girl and be able to soar the heavens like a bird. Thanks, ironically, to the Rowdyruff Boys, she knew.

Before she could enjoy it more, she felt the car lose altitude, and was gently lowered into the ground. She was at her driveway. The door was opened, and Ms Keane stepped out.

"Hey Ms Keane, why are your hands always behind your back? Are you hiding something?" Boomer asked naively.

Something about Boomer really reminded her of Bubbles. For a cold blooded killer, he was really so naive!

"My hands are cuffed," she said.

"What does cuffed mean?" he asked.

"It means he was handcuffed. You know, the things used by policemen to tie up criminals," said Butch as Brick went behind her.

_Snap!_

Pieces of metal fell on the ground near her feet, and she felt the metal imprisoning her hands disappear. She brought her hands in front of her and rubbed her wrists.

"Thank you," she said. "Why don't you come in?"

It was an obligation to invite them in. After all, they did save her from a fate worse than death.

She went back to her car, and searched for her purse. All the things they took from her, the boys put in the back of the car. She was grateful for that.

* * *

_**47\. Diamonds!** _

…

It was really a strange and eerie scene. The Rowdyruff Boys were in her house, drinking hot drinks, and it was because she invited them in. They were in the living room, Ms Keane seated by the single seat couch, and the three boys holding mugs of hot chocolate seated on the long couch. Since she would retire soon, she did not bother making a fire in the fireplace.

"This is delicious, Ms. Keane! Way more delicious than any other hot chocolate!" Boomer said.

"Why thank you, Boomer," she said, before she looked at the other two. "And Boys, thank you for saving me."

The leader smirked. "Don't mention it. As I said, nobody messes with our teacher."

"Well yes… wait. Your teacher? I haven't agreed to be your teacher."

"But you will. You said that you needed to be paid if you were to tutor us," said the leader before he took a sip off his mug. "That's really nice, Ms Keane. I hope you could spare the time to make us more of this when you're teaching us. Where was I? As I was saying, you won't accept stolen money. But we won't pay you in stolen money."

"So how would you?" asked the teacher curiously. She knew Brick was up to something, and she was intrigued.

He put the mug on the center table, stood up, looked at the fireplace, and looked around it. He picked up a lump of coal besides the fireplace. He placed it on his hands, and squeezed it.

"What the?" he said as he parted his hands, and revealed…

Crushed coal.

There was a snicker in the room. Butch was trying to repress his laughter.

"I thought… It should've," he began. "Ms Keane, do you have a book about carbon?" he asked.

"How about an encyclopedia?" she replied.

"Okay. That's good too," he said.

What was that boy up to? Was there a point in this exercising of crushing her coal to dust? What and why was he doing this? Why was he so confident that she would change her mind and teach them? Where would they actually get the money if they were so confident?

She went to a room that she converted into a mini-library.  _Encyclopedia Britannica_. She looked and picked letter C.

* * *

…

"Hm, so that's why I did it wrong," he said, more to himself as he read. Both his brothers and she were looking at him intently.

"What is he doing?" she asked his brothers.

"What superman did," Butch replied.

She shrugged as he put the book back on the table, and got another piece of coal. He put it between both his hands. His eyes glowed, and he began to slowly squeeze the coal between his hands, and at the same time, laser escaped from his eyes, and hit the coal.

All were quiet as they watched the scene. The redhead concentrated as laser poured from his eyes and the coal became red. She could see smoke from his hands as he carefully applied a tremendous amount of pressure.

He screamed as the coal really got hot and his superhuman skin began to burn.

"Bro, you should stop this. It ain't worth it," the green ruff said, concerned.

"Brick, your hands. They're burning!" she said, alarmed.

"No. It's so close. I needed to do this!" he said as he screamed in pain but refused to stop what he was doing.

He suddenly stopped the laser, and he fell on his bottom, panting, breathing hard. He was covered with sweat, and his hands were  _horribly_  burnt.

But Brick's condition wasn't what caught her attention.

It was something in his hand. It was big. It was shiny. It was clear.

_That's a diamond!_

"Did I do it?" Brick asked, his eyes closed, his voice indicating that he experiencing great pain, as he collapsed on the carpet.

"Yeah bro. That's a nice looking diamond," Butch said.

"I'm glad," he said as the leader, as he opened his eyes, and with effort and help from his brothers, got to his feet, and…

Stared at the big jewel in his burnt hand…

"Ms Keane. The diamond is yours," he said, handing the jewel to the teacher.

"Your hand!" she said, concerned.

"It'll heal. Just take the diamond," he said.

She looked at it, staring at it, trying to determine whether it was fake or not.

It was the real deal.

"If you teach us, we're gonna give you one diamond per day," he said. "That ought to be enough."

"That's… that's more than enough," she said as she stared before taking the said diamond.

"Keep it, it's yours," the leader said as he sat on the couch. "So, when do we start?"

"I haven't decided if I'll accept your offer."

"What?"

"I'm not sure yet. Please, let me think. This is a big decision. Come back tomorrow night, at about six in the evening."

"Okay Ms Keane," the leader said, very disappointed. "We're going back for your answer tomorrow."

Boomer and Butch floated, and Brick… tried to, but he ended up jumping. "My powers! What happened? I can't fly!"

"Looks like you exhausted yourself doing that," Ms Keane said as she went and got some bandages from a drawer.

"What are you doing?" asked Brick as she began wrapping her hands. "This will heal fast!"

That attitude will be the death of the ruff! He's just a little kid, thinking nothing could hurt him. Right after hurting himself just to be educated. How can she refuse him?

"I know you have super healing, but you need to keep this covered or it'll get infected, and you might get sick," she said, concern evident in her voice.

The leader looked at the teacher, and said, bewildered, "but why? Why care about my hands?"

_Why shouldn't I care?_

"Because it's the right thing to do," she answered.

He nodded. "Thanks."

Both Butch and Boomer took one arm of Brick and placed them it their necks.

"See ya tomorrow!" Boomer said, before they flew away.

Ms Keane again was conflicted. She was really horrified by what they did, killing those two goons. But she was also thankful. The boys can act nice. They weren't totally evil. In fact, if she did not witness them kill the two men in cold blood, she would have thought that they were really not evil. But they did kill in cold blood. Or was it cold blood? After all, there was a reason. It was because they were trying to rob her and hurt her and kidnap her and to rap… Oh no, she tried not to think about it. She really owed her life to the boys. She can't really condemn the boys for what they did. And she wasn't really sorry for the two robbers.

She looked at the diamond in her hand. It looked like a real diamond. Was it really a diamond? She had some diamond jewelry, and it looked identical to the stones that she wore at special occasions. But what does she know? She was not a jewelry expert. Maybe it's just glass. She needed to have it appraised.

If it was a real diamond, then her financial problems would be solved at a stroke. She imagined being given diamonds every day she taught the Rowdyruffs. She would be rich!

Her thoughts drifted to the boys. Were the boys evil? Yes. Killing the two thugs confirmed that. But would they be irredeemable? No. Ironically, the same events show that they can do good things. They saved her, after all. She owed them her life and her virtue. And they killed them because of what they would do to her. Completely irredeemable evil beings would not bother to do heroic things. They were capable of doing good. Could they change?

What would happen if they did change? They would be successful in life, no doubt. The mere fact that they were superpowered boys would put them on a successful path to the future. They could do many jobs that no ordinary mortals could undertake. But Brick's ability to turn coal into diamonds would seal the deal. They did not know it yet, but the boys just hit the superpower lottery. They could, no, will, become very rich. And they could use their wealth for good.

The boys would be a tremendous asset if they were on the side of good. And it would be a blow for evil. The world would be a better place with the Rowdyruffs as heroes side by side with the Powerpuffs. It would be a waste if they would remain evil. And it might end in a tragedy for the world if the boys, as powerful as they were, remained villains.

The world cannot afford for the boys to remain evil.

The world cannot afford…

She began to think. If the world cannot afford them to remain evil, then they must become good. But how? And who will show them the error of their ways? Certainly not the Powerpuff Girls. The girls hold the boys too much in contempt to even attempt to try to change their ways. The boys hated them too much to ever trust them.

They needed someone they respect, someone whom they will listen to, someone who they will trust…

Maybe she could be it?

Ms Keane smiled. Maybe it was her destiny to be the agent of change of the Rowdyruffs. She would wean them from evil, and make them into great men who would change the world for the better.

Could she change them?

She needed to try. She cannot fail. For the World. For the Powerpuff Girls! And yes, for the Rowdyruff Boys. She needed to succeed. And if she succeeds? The rewards would be great. For her personally, for the boys too, even for the Powerpuffs, but most of all, for the peace of the world.

She could use her teaching to make them good. And she would make them smart. Yes, she would make the boys far smarter than any child their age. Even smarter than the Powerpuff Girls. And when the time was right, she would be sure that because of her new teaching methods, they would top the examinations, and show the superintendent, and the state, that her ideas work. And then they would implement the necessary changes in the school system. The Rowdyruff Boys would be the one to show them all!

And Ms Keane smiled as the prospect of being the teacher of both the Powerpuff Girls and the Rowdyruff Boys filled her with glee. What a legacy she would leave to the city, the state, and the country!

She could already imagine the Rowdyruffs saving the day side by side with the Powerpuff Girls. All because of her.

How will she do it? She does not know yet.

But she will.

She will.

…

* * *

_**48\. The Deal** _

_The next day, October 6, 2004, Wednesday…_

"Can you repeat that again?" she asked.

The jeweler, aged about 64, with a bald hair and blue eyes, at the pawnshop, holding the diamond in one hand, and a loupe on the other, looked at his customer. "Ma'am, this is worth $ _10,000_. According to my examination, it's a one carat diamond."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"It's real, Mr Weathers?" she asked.

"Yes. It's the real deal. You really lucked out, ma'am. There are a lot of fakes out there. But this one, this one's real."

"Well, I want to sell it. Will you take it?"

"Now?"

"Yes."

"Okay," he said, a big smile forming on his face. He got his checkbook, and wrote a check for $10,000, before getting the diamond and placing it in a secure safe at the back of the shop.

Ms Keane had a really big smile as she left. It was half past three in the afternoon, thirty minutes after she had left school. She was delighted that it was indeed a real diamond. All her financial problems would be solved if she accepted the offer from the Rowdyruffs. She imagined receiving diamonds every day!

But she was concerned about Brick. So he was able to turn one coal into one diamond. But it took so much out of the Rowdyruff leader! It burnt his hand, it drained his powers, and it weakened him. What if he wasn't able to regain his powers? She hoped that he would regain his powers. His powers were a special gift and a part of his being.

…

* * *

 

Later, at about nine in the evening…

_Ding dong._

She opened the door and saw the three Rowdyruffs floating outside. "You're… okay," was the first thing she said as she eyed the leader.

Brick was fine. He was floating. He got his powers back. She looked at his hands. The bandages were gone, and there was no trace of any burns. He looked healthy, and there were no signs of any effect from the diamond-making the night before.

"Yeah. When I woke up, I was fine," he said. "I guess my superhealing kicked in."

"We were worried he would never recover," Boomer said, with a tiny hint of concern, as they came in. "But luckily, we're awesome! Superpowers are cool!"

"All I need is a good night's rest," said Brick as they settled on the couch in the living room. "So, are you gonna accept our offer?"

She looked at the three boys, and all three had a look of anticipation. Brick clearly was hopeful, Boomer was eager, while Butch was resigned.

"I will accept. I will teach you," said Ms Keane.

A big grin formed in Brick's face. "Really?"

"Yes. It would be an honor to teach the Rowdyruff Boys."

"YES! YES" he yelled and began flying around in circles. "Yes! We're gonna be smart! We're gonna be smarter than the Powerpuffs! Thank you, Ms Keane! Thank you!"

Yes, Ms Keane would make them smarter than the Powerpuff Girls. That was a promise she intended to keep. It would show those stuck-ups in the Education department that she was right.

Boomer was clearly happy for his brother, and he too joined in the fun. Butch was silent, his green eyes sullen. It was clear he wished that she had rejected the offer.

"Let's talk terms," Brick finally said after things had settled down. "First of all.  _We are evil_. We're  _proud_  to be evil. So don't lecture us or tell us we're wrong or that we should change to good. We are who we are, and nothing's gonna change that, okay?"

Of course they don't want to change. But she already anticipated that. The boys wanted knowledge. She would give it to them. But she would also change their attitudes and make them good, and they wouldn't even realize it. She would do it indirectly, subtly, and without challenging their beliefs.

"Of course. I won't moralize about being good and evil," she conceded. She would find ways. She would find ways to change their attitudes.

"And don't lecture us on how great the Powerpuff Girls are. We already know that. We're here to surpass them!" the Rowdyruff leader said.

"Don't worry. After we're done, you'll be way smarter than the Powerpuffs!" she said.

The boys would be her special project.

"Finally, we want to take the same tests as those girls. We want to know how we're doing, and we want you to teach us so that we would get higher scores," Brick said.

"That's reasonable."

"Please keep this a secret," he said. "We don't want anyone knowing about this. We prefer to surprise the world with our smarts!"

_Not to mention they might arrest them if they knew, and they might try to stop me from teaching them. Yeah. This should remain a secret._

"And in exchange, I'll give you one diamond per teaching day," he said. "That should be enough."

"And in exchange, I have my own terms," said Ms Keane. "First, our sessions would be from three thirty in the afternoon, to nine thirty in the evening. Dinner of course is on the house. How many days do you want to be taught?"

"Every day, until we surpass the girls," the redhead replied.

"That's too much. I need a break. How about six days a week? We'll use Sundays and holidays as breaks," Ms Keane replied.

He was deep in thought, but finally said, "okay."

"Now, how I teach is my decision. You will do as I say, and you will keep a certain standard," she began.

"What do you mean? A certain standard?" he asked.

"Look. You want me to teach you. And therefore, I want you to do your part. If I ask you to read something, read it. If I assign homework, then do it. If I give a quiz, I expect you to get flying colors. My standards are simple. You must not fail."

"Oh. We won't."

"Don't worry. If you follow what I say, you won't fail. As for the other rules. I require you to listen to me. If I asked for someone to recite, I better have someone raising his hand. If I asked a question to someone, I'd better get a good answer."

"No problem, Ms Keane," the leader said.

"You must behave! No trouble! No burning of chairs or throwing mice on innocent girls!" she ordered.

"Aw, that was so much fun!" Boomer whined. "Okay Ms Keane, I won't!"

"We won't, right Butch?" Brick said, looking at his middle brother.

"We won't," said Butch.

"We'll start on Monday. That should give me enough time to prepare," said the teacher.

The boys nodded.

"And one more thing," she said, looking at their tattered clothes. She excused herself, went to their room, and returned with a measuring tape, a pen, and a small notebook.

"Whatcha doing?" asked Brick.

"Come here and raise your arm," she asked the leader.

He did as asked.

"I'm measuring you," she said. "You need new clothes."

"But our clothes are fine!" Boomer argued.

"No, they're not."

"But we clean them every week! We steal soap from the washers, and wash our clothes in the lake!" the blond ruff argued. "Washing it in the lake's fun! You make lots and lots of bubbles, and we get a bath out of it too!"

"And we dry them using our laser!" Butch finished.

"Or we just force the drycleaners to clean our clothes," Brick argued as their new tutor measured his body.

"Your clothes might be clean, and I commend you for washing your clothes, but they are torn and faded. Do you have any other clothes that you wear?"

"No. Why should we? The Powerpuff Girls only wear one set of clothes, and they only clean it too, right?" asked Brick.

"Yes, they wear identical clothing, but they have lots of identical dresses! Lots and lots!" Ms Keane said. She rolled her eyes. She really must have a word with the Professor about having his daughters wear identical clothes day in and day out. "So their clothes don't get worn down."

"Okay, but we don't like to wear things like those at school!"

"Oh you mean uniforms? No. Not that. Just ordinary clothes," she said, laughing.

"Well, our new clothes better be the same as our clothes," he said as Ms Keane finished Brick's measurements.

"Butch?"

"What?" the black haired ruffed replied.

"It's your turn."

"Go on, Butch," Brick said, and the middle brother floated to Ms Keane.

She smiled as she measured Butch. She was shocked by the fact that they only had one set of clothes. They really needed help.

…

* * *

 

"Okay Boomer, it's your turn," she said, smiling as she spied Brick going to their fireplace.

She began measuring Boomer as Brick put a lump of coal in his hands, and his eyes started to glow.

She hoped that he won't get any worse than he did the night before.

* * *

**End of Chapter IV**

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